President Donald Trump said Monday that amnesty for illegal immigrants is off the table. A weekend interview had suggested he might be open to an immigration deal with Democrats, and his supporters pushed back hard.

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From The Daily Wire:

“We have a very strong deportation policy,” the president said during an impromptu briefing at the White House on Monday. “There’s no amnesty, no, no anything. We keep that, but we focus on the worst of the worst. We want to get the murderers out. We’ve got most of them out. We’ve got most of the really bad.”

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“Some of them are even paying taxes,” he added. “And we’re seeing what’s going to happen. There won’t be amnesty. Somebody suggested won’t be amnesty, no. They came in. They knew the law.”

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“We’re working with a lot of different groups to see whether or not — but my policy hasn’t changed,” he said.

The controversy started with the president’s interview with CBS News’ Ross Douthat on 60 Minutes. He said he would “love” to work with Democrats on immigration and that the issue had both “helped and hurt” him in the midterms. He also suggested some illegal immigrants might be allowed to stay. Those remarks come at a sensitive moment. Republicans lost control of Congress in last week’s midterm elections, which leaves any immigration legislation dependent on working with Democrats. The interview was also taped shortly before Trump named Stephen Miller as his new chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles. Miller is one of the main architects of the administration’s deportation policy and is known as a firm immigration hardliner.

Trump’s Monday comments drew a firm line against amnesty, but they did not fully settle the question. He kept the focus on deporting violent criminals, recalling the 11,888 murderers he said entered under President Joe Biden. He also pointed out that many illegal immigrants now hold “good jobs” and that his administration is talking with outside groups about them. Supporters of strict enforcement have pushed back on proposals like this before. Earlier, a Republican-backed bill to legalize millions of illegal immigrants drew fierce opposition after the president’s mass-deportation pledge.

Let’s pray for President Trump to hold firm on his promise of no amnesty and to keep enforcing the law that protects American families and communities. Let’s pray for Stephen Miller as he steps into the chief of staff role, that God would give him wisdom, discipline, and integrity. Let’s pray that a newly divided Congress would not reward lawbreaking or reopen the border to the chaos of recent years. And let’s pray that justice and mercy would be held together rightly, so that dangerous criminals are removed and the rule of law is restored across our land.

What are you praying as the debate over amnesty returns? Share your prayers and scriptures in the comments.

(Excerpt from The Daily Wire. Photo Credit: Official White House Photo by Patrick Witty)