Trump slams Haiti and African nations as ‘shithole countries’

In a meeting on immigration on Thursday, President Donald Trump used damning language in reference to immigrants from Africa, Haiti and other “shithole countries.”

“Why do we want all these people from ‘shithole countries’ coming here?” Trump told a bipartisan group of senators in the Oval Office, according to CNN.

The president’s comment was made during a meeting with six senators hoping to come to a compromise on immigration.

After Sen. Dick Durbin proposed to end the visa lottery in exchange for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for countries like El Salvador, Trump reportedly interrupted him when Durbin got to Haiti.

Trump went on to ask why the US would want more people from Haiti and African countries, rather than countries like Norway. The president also asked if Haiti could be left out of the plan, reports the New York Times, “Why do we want people from Haiti here?”

Trump’s infamous AIDS comment

Of course, Trump’s shocking comments are rather consistent with his past statements on immigrants, particularly from Haiti.

In December, he reportedly said that “all Haitians have AIDS” and made derogatory comments about the way Nigerians live.

Upon entering the Oval Office, sources said the president lashed out at his national security team during a White House meeting shortly after his inaguration. Trump grumbled about the number of immigrants who had entered the country since he took office.

The new leader of the free world claimed it made him look like a fool; one of his key campaign promises was to lower the number of immigrants coming into the country.

In response to the 15,000 Haitian immigrants who had arrived in the country, Trump reportedly said they “all have AIDS.” He went on to lament about the 40,000 Nigerians who would never “go back to their huts” in Africa.

A history of anti-immigration

Trump has long been anti-immigration with rhetoric painting them as the ones bringing crime and radicalization to the US. As a candidate, he peppered many of his speeches and public comments with such language.

Trump’s nationalist approach to immigration and many other issues is owed in part his senior policy adviser, Stephen Miller. Miller’s main goal has been to stop the flow of immigrants and refugees entering the country.

On Friday, a U.S. appeals court ruled that the most recent version of Trump’s immigration ban targeting people from six Muslim-majority countries should not be applied to those with strong U.S. ties.

“We conclude that the President’s issuance of the Proclamation once again exceeds the scope of his delegated authority,” the panel stated.

See reactions to Trump’s explosive comments below.