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President Donald Trump said Sunday that his administration is working on a plan to create a “temporary pass” for undocumented immigrants working in essential industries like farming — the latest twist in an administration struggling to balance hardline enforcement with labor market realities.
“We’re going to work it so that some kind of a temporary pass where people pay taxes, where the farmer can have a little control,” Trump said in a taped interview aired on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures.
“You end up destroying a farmer because you took all the people away. It’s a problem,” he added.
Trump appeared to acknowledge the essential role that many undocumented workers play in U.S. agriculture and hospitality sectors, describing scenarios in which authorities removed laborers who had worked on farms for decades.
No Details Yet, But Potential Shift for Longtime Workers
The White House and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) offered no specifics on how the temporary pass would work, whether it would provide legal protection from deportation, or how it would be administered. White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson referred reporters to Trump’s public remarks and declined further comment.
The proposal would mark a significant departure from Trump’s sweeping deportation rhetoric and could signal a softening toward industries that rely heavily on immigrant labor — a key concern among Trump’s agricultural and business allies.
DHS Stays Firm on Enforcement
Despite Trump’s conciliatory tone, DHS reaffirmed its hardline position on Sunday, repeating a standard statement it has issued throughout the month:
“The President has been incredibly clear. There will be no safe spaces for industries who harbor violent criminals or purposely try to undermine ICE’s efforts,” a DHS spokesperson said.
“Worksite enforcement remains a cornerstone of our efforts to safeguard public safety, national security and economic stability.”
The tension within the administration reflects a broader struggle to reconcile political promises of mass deportation with the economic reliance on undocumented labor, particularly in agriculture, food service, and hospitality.
Trump Acknowledges Labor Realities, Waffles on Raids
On June 12, Trump posted on Truth Social that his policies were “taking very good, long time workers away” from farmers and hotel owners who said their jobs were “almost impossible to replace.” He hinted that “changes are coming.”
Shortly after, ICE paused workplace arrests in several industries. But within days, the administration reversed that decision and resumed enforcement.
“Anyone present in the United States illegally is at risk of deportation,” the White House said at the time.
NBC News previously reported that Trump has floated the idea of allowing undocumented workers to leave the country and return legally under improvements to the H-2A and H-2B visa programs, which allow temporary laborers in agriculture and other sectors.
Farmer-Controlled Vetting?
Trump emphasized a “farmer knows” approach, suggesting that farmers themselves could vet who stays and who goes — a controversial idea with few legal or policy precedents.
“He’s not going to hire a murderer,” Trump said. “When you go into a farm and he’s had somebody working with him for nine years… and you end up destroying a farmer because you took all the people away — it’s a problem.”
Advocates, Employers and Lawmakers Await Clarity
Farmworker advocacy groups, labor unions, and employers are watching closely for more specifics on Trump’s “temporary pass” plan. Critics of the administration’s enforcement-first approach argue that mixed messaging is already undermining trust among immigrant workers and employers alike.
If formalized, Trump’s plan could reopen a long-dormant national conversation about immigration status for millions of undocumented workers, many of whom have lived in the U.S. for decades and pay taxes through ITINs but remain excluded from legal protections.
Until then, Trump’s messaging appears caught between campaign-season pragmatism and a base-pleasing tough-on-immigration stance — with immigrant families and U.S. industries caught in the middle.
