What recorded statements has Donald Trump made about Mexican immigrants and when were they said?
Executive summary
Donald Trump first made the most-cited remark about Mexican immigrants—“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best… They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.”—during his 2015 presidential campaign announcement; that line and its variants have been repeatedly referenced and documented in reporting and fact‑checks [1] [2]. Subsequent coverage and retrospectives trace a pattern of dehumanizing language toward immigrants across his political career, with outlets (Time, BBC, The Guardian) cataloging related insults, calls for a border wall and promises to exclude or deport immigrants [3] [4] [5].
1. The 2015 kickoff line that defined the narrative
Trump’s most widely quoted statement about Mexican immigrants—“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best… They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists”—originates in his June 2015 campaign announcement and is cited repeatedly in fact‑checking and academic summaries as emblematic of his approach to immigration [1] [2]. Reporting cites that phrase as the opening salvo that framed his 2015 campaign stance: linking Mexican migrants to crime and drugs and arguing for hardline border measures [1] [3].
2. Immediate fallout and defenses
After the 2015 remarks, Trump and his campaign defended the comments by distinguishing between “the Mexican people” and undocumented migrants, saying he “loves the Mexican people” while blaming border chaos and crime—language preserved in campaign statements and press releases where he refuses to “apologize for the truth” about border crime [6]. Media outlets documented both the original attack line and the subsequent attempts to soften or reframe it in interviews and releases [3] [6].
3. Repetition, amplification and examples across years
News organizations and analyses catalog multiple instances where Trump repeated or echoed the same themes—portraying immigrants as criminals, promising a border wall and claiming Mexico or migrants are responsible for crime and social decay. TIME and the BBC produced timelines and compilations of such remarks during the 2016 campaign, highlighting the recurring trio of “drugs, crime, rapists” and other insults aimed at Mexican immigrants [3] [4]. Academic and student work also cite that phrasing as central to his rhetoric and its impacts [2].
4. Broader pattern: dehumanizing language toward other immigrant groups
Recent reporting shows the same rhetorical pattern extended beyond Mexican migrants: outlets note Trump’s escalation of hostile language toward other nationalities and refugees in 2025, including new phrases and policy moves that echo the 2015 framing—blaming entire groups for crimes or security risks and using dehumanizing words like “garbage” in coverage of later remarks [7] [5]. The Guardian and CNN link contemporary policy shifts and rhetoric back to a consistent approach of scapegoating immigrants [7] [8].
5. Fact-checking and empirical challenges to his claims
Multiple fact‑checks and analyses challenge the empirical basis for equating immigrants with increased crime; outlets including The Marshall Project and Forbes document how Trump’s assertions about immigrants and crime are repeated rhetorically and questioned by data and analysts [1] [9]. Reporting notes that Trump’s criminality framing became a staple of his political messaging even as social‑science and public‑opinion data provide a more complex picture [1] [9].
6. Political function: mobilization, policy and visible consequences
Observers and scholars argue the rhetoric performed political work—justifying border walls, deportations and restrictive immigration policies while mobilizing a base receptive to tough immigration stances [10]. The Guardian and academic sources point to a linkage between incendiary language and policy initiatives across Trump’s presidencies and campaigns, while critics warn of the social harms and escalation of xenophobia [5] [10].
7. What the available sources do not enumerate
Available sources in this set document the key 2015 quote, many repeats and later parallel rhetoric through 2025, but they do not provide a comprehensive, date‑by‑date catalog of “every recorded statement” Trump ever made about Mexican immigrants. A full chronology with transcripts and exact dates beyond the high‑profile 2015 line and cited retrospectives is not found in current reporting (not found in current reporting).
Limitations and competing views
The sources demonstrate consensus that the 2015 line is pivotal [1] [2]. Trump’s camp framed some remarks as critiques of criminality and border policy, not Mexicans as a people [6]. At the same time, multiple independent news outlets and fact‑checks characterize the language as dehumanizing and consequential for policy and public attitudes [1] [7] [5].