When the immigration debate becomes war by another name

Sometimes we don’t appreciate people until they’re gone.

That thought came to mind with the news that Gallup’s latest poll shows a dramatic surge in positive views of immigrants. The share who thought immigration should decrease, as President Donald Trump wishes, dropped to 30 percent of all respondents this year from its five-year high of 55 percent in 2024, while those who thought immigration is a “good thing for the country” soared to 79 percent of respondents — a record high.

In other words, the more the administration has pursued the undocumented, and the more Americans have observed of the way they are being pursued, the less Americans have become inclined to view immigrants as the problem Trump has painted them to be.

That’s even true of Republicans. The proportions of GOP respon