--- title: Donald Trump State of the Union: Immigration Reform Pitch description: President Donald Trump told network anchors Tuesday that he is considering calling for comprehensive immigration reform. canonical: https://time.com/4686231/donald-trump-state-union-immigration-reform/ author: Zeke Miller article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-02-28T21:27:38.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T03:35:07.369Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump May Pitch Immigration Reform in Address to Congress og:description: It would require "a softening on both sides." og:url: https://time.com/4686231/donald-trump-state-union-immigration-reform/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb63293b8f0815a05/6988bc6497cdff806a6afa5f/trump-lede.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-GOVERNORS og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump May Pitch Immigration Reform in Address to Congress twitter:description: It would require "a softening on both sides." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb63293b8f0815a05/6988bc6497cdff806a6afa5f/trump-lede.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump May Pitch Comprehensive Immigration Reform in Address by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke Miller Feb 28, 2017 9:27 PM UTC  Donald Trump speaks to members of the National Governors Association and his administration before a meeting in the State Dining Room of the White House, on Feb. 27, 2017 in Washington, D.C. Donald Trump speaks to members of the National Governors Association and his administration before a meeting in the State Dining Room of the White House, on Feb. 27, 2017 in Washington, D.C.Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke Miller Feb 28, 2017 9:27 PM UTC President Donald Trump told network anchors Tuesday that he is considering adding a call for a comprehensive immigration reform deal to his [joint address to Congress](http://time.com/4684755/trump-speech-state-of-the-union/) tonight. Trump’s comments came during the traditional off-the-record lunch to [preview the address](http://time.com/4684210/trump-congress-address-how-to-watch-online/), and were attributed by multiple outlets to a “senior administration official,” in accordance with ground rules negotiated with the White House. Trump told the anchors that getting an immigration bill done would require “a softening on both sides. There’s got to be a coming together,” CNN [reported](http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/28/politics/trump-immigration-bill/). Trump is not inclined to include a path to citizenship for most of the people in the U.S. illegally, according to reports, but would consider providing one for those who were brought to the U.S. as children by their parents. Trump has promised to treat those immigrants “in a very humane way.” White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said the President’s focus is still on securing the border and removing undocumented immigrants with criminal records. But Sanders held the door open to the White House issuing a call for an immigration reform pact. “He’s made clear that he’s open to have conversations about that moving forward,” she told reporters, adding that Trump has repeatedly stated that the immigration system is “broken and needs massive reform.” If Trump calls for immigration reform, he could face opposition not only from his core supporters but also allies inside the White House. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and senior policy advisor Stephen Miller, a former Sessions aide, led the fight on the right to topple the so-called Gang of Eight bill in 2013, the last bipartisan push for comprehensive immigration reform. Trump told the anchors Tuesday that to get a bill passed, “it has to be a negotiation,” suggesting he could find a solution that pleases all points on the political spectrum. But there is little appetite on Capitol Hill for taking up immigration reform now. Congressional Republicans already face an uphill battle trying to devise a replacement for Obamacare, the first step in a crowded and complicated legislative calendar that also includes passing a budget, confirming Trump’s Supreme Court nominee [Neil Gorsuch](http://time.com/4678691/republicans-neil-gorsuch-congress-nuclear-option/) and crafting a rewrite of the nation’s tax laws. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4686231/donald-trump-state-union-immigration-reform/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4686231/donald-trump-state-union-immigration-reform/"},"headline":"President Trump May Pitch Comprehensive Immigration Reform in Address","datePublished":"2017-02-28T21:27:38.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T03:35:07.369Z","description":"President Donald Trump told network anchors Tuesday that he is considering calling for comprehensive immigration reform.","url":"https://time.com/4686231/donald-trump-state-union-immigration-reform/","keywords":["Immigration","Congress","White House","state of the union","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb63293b8f0815a05/6988bc6497cdff806a6afa5f/trump-lede.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Zeke Miller","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb63293b8f0815a05/6988bc6497cdff806a6afa5f/trump-lede.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-POLITICS-TRUMP-GOVERNORS","caption":"Donald Trump speaks to members of the National Governors Association and his administration before a meeting in the State Dining Room of the White House, on Feb. 27, 2017 in Washington, D.C.","creditText":"Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/immigration/","name":"Immigration"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4686231/donald-trump-state-union-immigration-reform/","name":"President Trump May Pitch Comprehensive Immigration Reform in Address"}}]}] ```