Trump revives harsh anti-immigration rhetoric ahead of midterm elections - but it could badly backfire

Donald Trump has returned to using the harsh and aggressive anti-immigration rhetoric that he utilised so effectively two years ago to help secure the White House.

Less than three weeks before 6 November, the president has been trying to stoke fears over immigration, turning his attention to the caravan of mostly Central American migrants making its way northwards from the southern Mexican border. He has claimed it was organised by the Democrats and said there are “unknown Middle Easterners” among them, although he has offered no evidence to support this.

While it is possible, refugees from places such as Syria and Iraq are among the convoy, reports suggest the overwhelming majority are people from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, fleeing gang violence and economic hardship.

“That is an assault on our country and in that caravan you have some very bad people and we can’t let that happen to our country,” Mr Trump said in Houston on Monday night at a rally for Ted Cruz, the Republican senator who two years ago he repeatedly mocked. “I think the Democrats had something to do with it.”

He added: “This will be the election of the caravan, Kavanaugh, tax cuts, law and order and common sense.”

The New York Times said Mr Trump and other Republicans had made a calculation that focussing on the issue would help get out their base of supporters. It said a number of Republican candidates and political committees had delivered messages plainly aimed at stoking cultural anxiety among white voters.

While the issue of immigration is never far from Mr Trump’s teleprompter or Twitter feed, it is something he has returned to repeatedly in recent days. On Monday, he threatened to cut off aid to Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, the first two of which suffer the deadliest violence outside of a war zone.

“Sadly, it looks like Mexico’s police and military are unable to stop the Caravan heading to the southern border of the United States. Criminals and unknown Middle Easterners are mixed in. I have alerted Border Patrol and Military that this is a National Emergency. Must change laws,” he tweeted.

“Every time you see a Caravan, or people illegally coming, or attempting to come, into our Country illegally, think of and blame the Democrats for not giving us the votes to change our pathetic immigration Laws! Remember the midterms! So unfair to those who come in legally.”

Asked later on Monday about his assertion about “unknown Middle Easterners” in the caravan Mr Trump told reporters: “Unfortunately, they have a lot of everybody in that group…..We’ve gotta stop them at the border and, unfortunately, you look at the countries, they have not done their job.”

On Tuesday, vice president Mike Pence repeated the president’s assertion.

“It’s inconceivable that there are not people of Middle Eastern descent in a crowd of more than 7,000 people advancing towards our border,” Mr Pence told the Washington Post.

It is possible that some people who voted for Mr Trump in 2016 and who are said to have been turned off by his rhetoric, may see his comments are further reason to vote for a Democratic candidate, or not vote at all in the midterms. Without doubt, it is likely to encourage his grass roots supporters.

Christina Greer, associate professor of political science at New York’s Fordham University, told The Independent: “This is red meat to his base. We know he has trafficked in nationalist and white supremacist language.

“He claims he knows Middle Easterners are among them. We don’t know where he is seeing that, but his base hears it and they believe it.”

Florida Republican congressman Matt Gaetz is among those who have claimed the caravan was funded by Democrats and even liberal financier George Soros. On Monday, police were called to Mr Soros’s New York home to deal with what was described as a genuine explosive device.

“This is more fear-mongering from Donald Trump. It helped get him elected president, so he’s gone back to the tried-and-true, although you can argue that Trump has used the technique consistently,” said Larry Sabato, professor of politics at the University of Virginia.

“MS-13 gangs, Middle Eastern terrorists, evil illegal immigrants. According to Trump they are all part of the caravan. They are immigrants for sure, fleeing despotic rule and gang violence. To Trump, they are a major part of the campaign litany he hopes will reelect Republicans to the US congress.”

Many of the claims of Mr Gaetz and Mr Trump have been debunked by US media – including the claim the caravan was paid for by Democrats or that it contains terrorists.

NBC said the Department of Homeland Security is able to gather biometric data as migrants pass between the borders of Central American countries. A former senior intelligence official said there is no evidence that any Middle Eastern terrorists are hiding in the caravan.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Oglesby, a professor at the University of Arizona’s Centre for Latin American Studies, told the network: “The reason that the caravans have been organised are to help protect Central American refugees and migrants as they make the perilous journey through Mexico and to highlight their petitions for asylum.”

The caravan of migrants, said to be between 7,000-10,000 people, is currently close to the city of Huixatla, 45 miles from the border with Guatemala where they crossed near the city of Hidalgo.

Earlier this year, a smaller caravan headed for the Tijuana-San Diego crossing, dissipating as it advanced. About 200 of the 1,200 who started the journey, arrived at the border with California.

One of the current members of the caravan, 48-year-old Edwin Enrique Jimenez Flores of Tela, Honduras, told the Associated Press, he had persistent coughs, but still vowed to reach the US to seek work. He said: “I feel strong. My feet are good.”