Salazar Warns Trump Not to Squander Hispanic Voter Gains
Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar said Sunday that Trump called her 'very receptive' after she warned him that Hispanic voters feel 'betrayed' by his immigration enforcement. A White House official confirmed the two spoke by phone but gave no details.
- 50% of the roughly 50,000 people ICE detained in July had no criminal record, Salazar claims.
- Salazar's district voted for Trump by nearly 15 points in 2024.
- Trump told reporters Friday: 'Maria won only because of me.'
- Salazar said some of Trump's advisers are 'compromising his legacy' but named no one.
Why it matters: The dispute exposes a real tension inside the Republican coalition ahead of the midterms. Salazar argues that Hispanic voters who powered Trump's 2024 gains are movable — and movable the wrong way.
- Recent polls show a portion of Hispanic voters straying from Trump as his overall approval falls.
How 5 sources split on this story
Where they split: The core dispute is whether Hispanic voters who backed Trump in 2024 now feel alienated by immigration enforcement — Salazar says yes, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise says no.
Left coverage, 2 sources: The left frames this as evidence of cracks in the GOP's Hispanic coalition, spotlighting Salazar's public break with Trump's enforcement approach and Trump's defensive pushback.
Right coverage, 3 sources: The right leads with Salazar's sharpest attack on Trump's inner circle — that unnamed advisers are 'compromising his legacy' — rather than on the voter-drift concern.
What’s next: Salazar is pushing a bipartisan bill giving some undocumented immigrants without criminal records renewable legal status.
- She is framing the legislation as a way to preserve Republican gains with Hispanic voters before 2026.
- Whether Trump will back or publicly oppose Salazar's immigration bill remains unclear.
- Which advisers Salazar believes are 'compromising' Trump's legacy — she declined to name them.