Contradicting Trump, Acting Chief Of Staff Mick Mulvaney Says U.S. Is ‘Desperate’ For Legal Immigrants

Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said the U.S. is “desperate” for more immigrants at a private event in the U.K. on Wednesday.

Speaking to a crowd at the Oxford Union, he said the U.S. is “desperate — desperate — for more people. We are running out of people to fuel the economic growth that we’ve had in our nation over the last four years. We need more immigrants.”

According to audio obtained by the Washington Post, Mulvaney emphasized he wants an increase in immigrants coming in a “legal fashion,” contradicting several people within the Trump administration who wish to decrease both legal and illegal immigration.

For instance, senior policy adviser Stephen Miller has supported a number of policies to cut all immigration, believing it increases wage competition for U.S. citizens. President Donald Trump has also previously said the country is “full” and people crossing the Mexican border should “turn around.”

Mulvaney said Trump may appear to be anti-immigration, but actually hopes to increase legal immigration for the sake of the economy.