Q Thank you, Mr. President. I wonder if you could comment on this disconnect that we seem to have in this country, where you are presenting information about what’s happening at the border — calling it an “invasion,” talking about women with duct tape over their mouths, and so on — and yet there’s a lot of reporting out there, there’s a lot of crime data out there, there’s a lot of Department of Homeland Security data out there that shows border crossings at a near-record low —
THE PRESIDENT: That’s because of us. But it’s still —
Q — that shows undocumented immigrants committing crime at lower levels —
THE PRESIDENT: Excuse me. It’s still massive numbers of crossings.
Q — that shows undocumented criminals — or undocumented immigrants committing crime at lower levels than native-born Americans. What do you say —
THE PRESIDENT: You don’t really believe that stat, do you? Do you really believe that stat?
Q What do you — well, let me ask you this —
THE PRESIDENT: Take a look at our federal prisons.
Q I believe in facts and statistics and data, but —
THE PRESIDENT: Okay? Any more? Quick, let’s go.
Q Let me just ask you this: What do you say to your critics who say that you are creating a national emergency, that you’re concocting a national emergency here in order to get your wall because you couldn’t get it through other ways?
THE PRESIDENT: I ask the Angel Moms: What do you think? Do you think I’m creating something?
Ask these incredible women, who lost their daughters and their sons. Okay?
PARTICIPANT: This is real.
