Donald Trump's colorful presidential campaign heads to the
U.S.-Mexico border on Thursday, where the billionaire businessman is sure to
expand on his controversial comments about immigrants.
He'll travel to
Laredo, Texas, for a tour with U.S. border patrol agents.
The trip comes
as Trump dominates the Republican presidential contest -- both in the polls and
in the headlines. He sparked a fierce debate among Republicans last month when
he referred broadly to Mexican
immigrants as criminals and rapists. He angered many Republicans this weekend
by questioning John McCain's status as a war hero. And on Tuesday, he escalated
a verbal war with Lindsey Graham by releasing the South Carolina senator's cell
phone number.
A chapter of the
National Border Patrol Council, the agency's union, invited Trump earlier this
month to tour one of the most active parts of the border with the agents who
work there. Hector Garza, the president of the chapter, told CNN earlier this month
that he wanted "to give Donald Trump a state of the border" and a
"boots on the ground perspective."
Garza, a border
patrol agent, said his invitation was not an endorsement of Trump's
presidential run, saying that his group regularly invites politicians --
including previous tours with GOP Reps. Jason Chaffetz of Utah and Blake
Farenthold of Texas.
He also invited
Sen. Ted Cruz, who is also vying for the Republican presidential nomination,
last month.
Garza said his
organization's only goal is to encourage policies that will lead to a strong
border and a safer environment for his fellow agents. The Laredo chapter is one
of the largest in the country, Garza said, representing about 1,400 border
patrol agents.
While he would
not comment on Trump's controversial remarks about Mexican immigrants, Garza
said agents posted near Laredo "do see a lot of aliens with a criminal
history," and said that while not all are criminals, a "large
number" have criminal backgrounds.
Trump first told
CNN he had been invited to the border by a group of border patrol agents during
a phone interview two weeks ago. The visit will be Trump's fourth to the
border, by his count.
"I'm the
only one that speaks their language," he said.
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