Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander adults are more likely than the overall U.S. population to view legal immigration as an asset to the country's economy and workforce, according to a new poll.
When it comes to the risks posed by illegal immigration, though, their views are similar to those of Americans overall.
About 8 in 10 AAPI adults say legal immigration to the U.S. is a "major benefit" contributing to economic growth, a survey released Monday by AAPI Data and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds. In comparison, around 4 in 10 Americans overall felt the same way in an AP-NORC poll conducted in March. Similarly, around three-quarters of AAPI voters say skilled expertise in science and technology is a major benefit of legal immigration, compared with about 4 in 10 Americans in March.
The polling results come as former President Donald Trump, with less than a month until Election Day, continues to focus on the threat of immigration in his presidential campaign against Vice President Kamala Harris. The Republican recently falsely claimed that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had no money to help Hurricane Helene survivors because it was spent on programs for undocumented immigrants. During the presidential debate last month, Trump amplified a false rumor that Haitians living legally in Springfield, Ohio, were eating people's pets. The debunked claims led to bomb threats to schools and government buildings, and drew on a long history in the U.S. of maligning immigrant communities through their food.
Aldrin Villahermosa II, 25, and a registered independent in Tacoma, Washington, was "mad and annoyed" when he heard Trump target Haitians that way.
