Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) quoted Martin Scorsese’s The film “Gangs of New York” claims that “ethnic enclaves” are responsible for higher crime rates.
Donald Trump’s The vice presidential candidate held a press conference at the Milwaukee Police Association on Friday. Vance was asked about previous comments he made regarding Irish and Italian immigration to the country.
In an interview with a highly controversial podcaster in September 2021, Vance said: “There was this massive wave of primarily Italian, Irish and German immigration, and that had its problems and that had its consequences.”
A reporter asked Vance about his comments and whether he believed “mass deportations” would be a solution to these “ethnic enclaves.” Vance reiterated his previous comments and referred to the Scorsese film set in the 1860s.
Has anybody ever seen the movie “Gangs of New York”? That’s what I’m talking about. We know that the formation of these huge ethnic enclaves in our country can sometimes lead to higher crime rates. What we want is an American immigration policy that promotes assimilation, so that anybody, no matter where they come from, can become an American, but only if we have an immigration policy that promotes assimilation, rather than doing things like what we’ve done in the last few years, which is 20 to 25 million illegal immigrants settling here with no control, no enforcement, no real way to monitor what’s going on. That’s a disaster. And in fact, we realized in the early 20th century that we need to do that today. We recognize that America is a welcoming country for immigrants on some level, but it can only take in so many people.
We can’t bring the whole world into this country. And I think we’re at a point now where we have to say we have to reduce illegal immigration to zero. We have to deport some people who have come here illegally. And I think that will encourage assimilation and a shared American culture that is in the best interest of everybody. Look, I’m married to the daughter of South Asian immigrants. One of the reasons I think we have such a wonderful and successful marriage is because we both feel that America is our home and that our children belong here. What happens when there is mass illegal immigration? It actually leads to ethnic conflict. It leads to higher crime rates. We’ve seen that clearly over the last few years. And I would like to stop it. And I know Donald Trump would, too.
WashingtonPost columnist Philipp Bump responded to the clip on X: “The irony is that the most brutal and cruel killer in this film is the native who despises immigrants.”
Watch the clip above via CSPAN.
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