WASHINGTON (AP) - Donald Trump's plan to deport millions of people in the U.S. illegally and eliminate birthright citizenship risks deepening a Republican rift on immigration. Some leaders say that divide must be bridged if the GOP hopes to win back the White House.
Republicans thought they had a strategy for moving past their immigration woes before the 2016 election. Even when those plans ran aground on Capitol Hill, some were hopeful that presidential candidates like Jeb Bush, the Spanish-speaking former Florida governor, or Sen. Marco Rubio, a Miami native and son of Cuban parents, could boost the party's appeal to Hispanics.
But the strength of Trump's summer surge has reinforced the power of the conservative white voters who now dominate the party's primaries and may prefer immigration policies that alienate Hispanic voters.