Trump promises to end sanctuary cities during Fox News town hall – Deseret News

Former President Donald Trump promised to end sanctuary cities for migrants, ban biological boys in girls sports and cut energy bills in half, if reelected, during an all-female town hall on Fox News.

The Republican Party nominee for president fielded questions from Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner and nine female Georgia residents on Tuesday for a pre-recorded segment of the "The Faulkner Focus" which aired on Wednesday.

Speaking without a teleprompter, Trump appeared comfortable taking definitive stances on a wide range of issues in a more intimate setting than his typical campaign rally. Tuesday's town hall saw the candidate, age 78, attempt a softer tone, avoiding attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris and showing concern for the difficulties women face with health care, childcare and safety.

Trump leads his Democratic opponent by less than 1% in the Real Clear Polling Average of Georgia, making it one of the tightest polling swing states in the country. Women have traditionally favored Trump's competition in large numbers. In 2020, President Joe Biden beat Trump among women 55%-44% . Recent polls show Harris with the same, or a larger, lead among female voters in 2024.

Big action on border Trump promised to use his executive authority to deport criminals and beef up border security. While he drew a hard line on his signature issue, he also went out of his way to talk about the importance of expanding legal immigration.

"We want to have as many people come in as possible but they have to come in legally," Trump said. "We don't want murders, we don't drug dealers, we don't human traffickers, we don't want people from prison that are being let out after murdering somebody. We don't want to have that. We want to have great people come in."

One Georgia resident asked about the death of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old college student who was murdered while jogging at the University of Georgia. The alleged killer, José Antonio Ibarra, was a 26-year-old Venezuelan who entered the United States illegally. The questioner, who said her son was attending a university in Athens, Georgia, at the time, asked what Trump would do to keep cities safe from migrant crime.

"We're going to end all sanctuary cities in the United States and we're going to go back to normalcy," Trump said.

The term sanctuary city typically refers to a municipality with an official policy of limiting cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in the detainment or deportation of migrants who entered the country illegally. City and county officials in Athens have said the town is not a sanctuary city. Georgia law has outlawed sanctuary cities for at least 15 years.

Trump said he would "end all sanctuary cities immediately" through executive orders. This authority already exists under the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, Trump said, which grants the president wartime power to deport non-citizens of an enemy nation. His administration would employ this authority to move migrants out of sanctuary cities to prosecute them, Trump said.

Ban on boys in girls sports The Trump-friendly crowd expressed some concern about the former president's stance on abortion and infertility treatments. Trump said his campaign was "totally in favor" of IVF and suggested his administration would be more active on the issue than Harris'. Trump has proposed requiring the government, or insurance companies, to cover all costs related to IVF.

Trump said the Supreme Court's decision to end a federal right to an abortion achieved a legal consensus to return the divisive issue to the people. Trump called some conservative state abortion bans "too tough" and said he is a "big supporter" of exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.

The room appeared united in their approval of Trump's stance on "biological men and boys competing against women and girls in sports," with what looked like the every attendee raising their hand when asked whether it was something they are worried about. "The transgender issue in women's sports," as one questioner put it is "such an easy question," Trump said.

"We're not going to let it happen," Trump said. When asked whether he would work with the sports leagues or the Olympics counsels to implement this policy, Trump said to extended applause, "You just ban it, the president bans it, you just don't let it happen."

More energy, better economy When it came to questions about inflation, the economy and supporting the middle class, Trump's answer was repeatedly "energy." Increasing U.S. oil production will increase American dominance abroad and will decrease energy prices at home, Trump said, which will have a downstream effect on nearly all products and services.

"It all starts with energy. We have more energy than anybody. We don't use it," Trump said. "That's what caused inflation, energy, more than anything else."

If he had remained in office for a second term, Trump estimated the country's oil production would be four or five times higher, placing the U.S. ahead of Saudi Arabia and Russia. Trump said that because America has "the best and the most" energy sources in the world he feels like he can pledge that once energy production is unleashed, energy bills will plummet.

"Your energy bill, which is a very big bill, will be down 50% one year from Jan. 20," Trump said.

The candidate said voters can have confidence that he will achieve a safe border and strong economy because he's done it before. Trump touted the tax cuts and expanded child tax credit passed during his first term.

Trump promised to impose tariffs to protect American businesses and bring jobs back from oversees. Most economists believe tariffs imposed by the Biden and Trump administrations serve as a tax on American consumers and increase product prices.

With 20 days till the election, Trump and Harris have both scheduled several on-air appearances. Harris is scheduled to appear in her first Fox News interview on Wednesday.