Code Switch How calls for mass deportations went mainstream
Sep 10, 2025
Lisa Hagan, an NPR journalist focusing on far-right immigration rhetoric, and Kuo Jingnan, an expert on the normalization of fringe ideas, discuss the surge of calls for mass deportations in American politics. They explore how once-fringe concepts like 'remigration' have entered mainstream discourse, showing alarming parallels with white nationalist ideologies. The conversation reveals the historical roots of these ideas and their implications for national identity and policy, highlighting the troubling rise of anti-immigrant sentiment in both the U.S. and Europe.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Fringe Rhetoric Enters Mainstream
- Calls to ban "third world immigration" moved from fringe far-right circles into mainstream conservative conversation.
- Influencers like Charlie Kirk and Matt Walsh publicly advocated banning third-world immigration, normalizing extreme rhetoric.
Policy Mirrors Restrictionist Rhetoric
- The Trump administration has used policy to reduce legal pathways, echoing restrictionist rhetoric.
- Actions include ending forms of legal status, student visas, and expanding travel bans targeting nonwhite-majority countries.
Buchanan Photobombed By Extremists
- Pat Buchanan campaigned on mass-immigration restriction in the early 1990s and drew support from extremist groups.
- Buchanan's border photo op was repeatedly photobombed by Klansmen and neo-Nazis, illustrating fringe ties.
