PolitiFact: Trump’s immigration claim is mostly false

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FORT MYERS, Fla.- Donald Trump has made a string of inflammatory remarks about Mexican immigrants since launching his presidential campaign.

During his announcement speech on June 16, Trump called them drug runners and rapists.

In the weeks since, Trump hasn’t apologized or backed down.

He told voters at a campaign event in Bedford, New Hampshire “hundreds of thousands (of illegal immigrants) are in jail.”

Our research team at PolitiFact investigated the claim. They rated it MOSTLY FALSE on the Truth O Meter.

The Department of Homeland Security told researchers it doesn’t keep track of incarcerated illegal immigrants.

“The closest we could find was somewhere on the order of 90,000 to 100,000,” PolitiFact reporter Joshua Gillin said.

However, that’s not “hundreds of thousands” as Trump said.

Our research team pulled reports from several federal agencies including the Bureau of Justice Statistics. They note some reports don’t distinguish between undocumented immigrants and legal immigrants. Experts also say many in prison are awaiting deportation, because they broke immigration laws.

Trump’s campaign did not get back to PolitiFact when asked to prove his immigration points.

To read more about the fact check, click here.

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