--- title: Donald Trump Told Senators He's Open to Immigration Reform description: President Trump told a group of lawmakers at the White House on Thursday that he would be open to the 2013 Gang of Eight immigration bill. canonical: https://time.com/4666108/donald-trump-immigration-reform-joe-manchin/ author: Sam Frizell article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-02-09T20:45:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T03:14:53.313Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Trump Said He Would Be Open to Immigration Reform og:description: According to a lawmaker who met with him. og:url: https://time.com/4666108/donald-trump-immigration-reform-joe-manchin/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt37980bfd1cbf9bca/6988b94f428a9e70bacd5c9c/donald-trump-approval1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: US-POLITICS-TRUMP-SHERIFFS og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Trump Said He Would Be Open to Immigration Reform twitter:description: According to a lawmaker who met with him. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt37980bfd1cbf9bca/6988b94f428a9e70bacd5c9c/donald-trump-approval1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump Said He Would Be Open to Immigration Reform by [Sam Frizell](https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Feb 9, 2017 8:45 PM UTC  President Donald Trump speaks at the Major Cities Chiefs Association and Major County Sheriff's Association Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 8, 2017. President Donald Trump speaks at the Major Cities Chiefs Association and Major County Sheriff's Association Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 8, 2017.Saul Loeb—AFP/Getty Images by [Sam Frizell](https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Feb 9, 2017 8:45 PM UTC President Trump told a group of lawmakers at the White House on Thursday that he is open to reexamining [the 2013 Gang of Eight immigration bill](http://swampland.time.com/2013/06/12/gang-of-eight-talks-immigration-perks-pitfalls-and-strategy/), a bipartisan compromise that included a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, according to a Senator who was at the meeting. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia [told reporters](https://twitter.com/seungminkim/status/829777536976617472) on Capitol Hill that in their meeting Trump said he was open to reexamining the legislation. A spokesman confirmed Manchin made the comment to reporters. Shortly afterward, the White House walked back the President’s statement, with White House spokesman Sean Spicer he does not support the Gang of Eight but encouraged similar cooperative efforts by Senators in the future. If the President did support the Gang of Eight, it would be a remarkable break from his previous stance on immigration. He has called for building a wall on the border with Mexico and relentlessly mocked Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for supporting it, calling him “Mr. Amnesty” in a November 2015 tweet. > [](https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/660795917973499904) It’s unclear whether the President understands the bill and its implications. It included provisions to build tougher border security and allow over a multi-year period undocumented residents to eventually achieve legal status. Drafted by Republican Sens. John McCain, Marco Rubio, Jeff Flake and Lindsey Graham, as well as four Democrats including Sen. [Chuck Schumer](http://time.com/4664849/donald-trump-chuck-schumer-interview/), now the Democratic leader, it passed the Senate with an overwhelming majority but was never brought to the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote. Trump’s popularity with his base stemmed in part from his hardline opposition to compromise on immigration reform. 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