Former President Donald Trump’s senior campaign adviser, Corey Lewandowski, took CNN anchor Jim Acosta to task on Wednesday during a heated segment on CNN Newsroom over the issue of illegal immigrants with homicide convictions residing in the U.S.
Lewandowski pressed Acosta to address data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which revealed that 13,099 non-detained illegal immigrants with homicide convictions were in the country as of July 21, according to a Wednesday letter.
Throughout the interview, Acosta repeatedly dismissed Lewandowski’s claims, casting doubt on the statistics. “Corey, can you say that Haitian migrants are not eating pets in Springfield?” Acosta asked, shifting the focus of the conversation.
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Lewandowski responded by emphasizing the gravity of the ICE data. “You know what I can say, Jim? I can say that 13,099 murders were let into this country, 16,000 rapists, 425,000 people in the last four years have been let into this country by [Vice President] Kamala Harris and [President] Joe Biden’s own Customs and Border Protection that are running around this country, Jim, committing crimes.”
Acosta did not engage with the statistics directly, instead questioning Lewandowski’s pronunciation of Kamala Harris’ first name.
Undeterred, Lewandowski continued to push the numbers, noting the impact of crimes committed by illegal immigrants. “Jim, we know that they’re committing crimes against Americans. Why can’t these individuals talk about the individuals who have been killed by illegal immigrants? 13,099 murderers have been let into this country by this administration’s own accounting,” he argued.
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Lewandowski accused the administration of failing to address the issue, stating, “That’s four murders for every single county in America. You don’t think that that’s a problem?”
Acosta countered by claiming, “Border crossings are down and crime is down,” but Lewandowski rejected the notion that crime rates had improved. He referenced recent data, including statistics released by the FBI in September, which showed a 3% decline in violent crime nationally.
However, Lewandowski pointed out that some experts have highlighted discrepancies between local crime data and federal reports.
For instance, while the FBI found slight decreases in robbery and aggravated assault, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported a 4.1% increase in rape, robbery, and aggravated assault in 2023, according to the Crime Prevention Research Center.
As the conversation grew more intense, Acosta accused Lewandowski of refusing to accept the outcome of the 2020 election or address allegations regarding Haitian migrants.
Lewandowski, however, returned to his central argument, saying, “Jim, will you admit that 13,000 murderers have come into the country?”
Acosta dismissed the number, calling it “false,” which prompted Lewandowski to challenge him for evidence.
Jim Acosta to Corey Lewandowski: "Corey, you've been in this business a long time. I think you're a mature grownup. It's Ka-ma-la Harris. Can you just say Kamala? What's going on there?" He then ends the interview. pic.twitter.com/EysN0GweDa
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 2, 2024
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security also weighed in, telling NBC News that the data has been misrepresented.
According to the spokesperson, ICE’s statistics go back four decades, and it remains unclear when the first of the 13,000 illegal immigrants convicted of homicide entered the U.S.
Despite the contentious exchange, Lewandowski continued to push the issue of illegal immigrant crime and the role of the Biden-Harris administration, underscoring the deep divisions in the immigration debate.
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This is what they are worried about? will he concede IF he loses? geezus! these people are INSANE! Trump did not falsely claim they were eating pets!! there is VIDEO EVIDENCE that they are in fact eating people’s pets! they are also MURDERING and RAPING Americans! Acosta should be put off the air. he is spreading MISINFORMATION. they think just because they say it, it means it’s real! unbelievable!!! the TDS is strong in that guy!