US President Donald Trump acknowledged in an interview with CBS on Sunday that his administration's mass deportation policy had been "too harsh".
The remarks came just days after the Republican Party suffered a heavy defeat in the midterm elections.
"I think that was very harsh," Trump said when asked about his immigration policy, according to excerpts from the interview released on social media.
The president did not clarify whether he intends to alter his approach.
His comments came two days after he promoted adviser Stephen Miller, a prominent figure behind the administration's hardline immigration agenda, to the influential position of White House chief of staff.
Hispanic voter backlash
In the midterm elections, which were won decisively by the Democrats, many Hispanic voters who had helped return Trump to office shifted away from the Republican Party.
The change was attributed to disappointment over unfulfilled promises to reduce living costs, as well as perceptions that immigration enforcement authorities were carrying out deportations indiscriminately.
Vance open to policy adjustments
The day after the Republicans' electoral defeat, which Trump largely blamed on the war with Iran, Vice President JD Vance said he was open to changes in immigration enforcement practices.
In a lengthy post on X, Vance wrote that he was "open to the idea of changing enforcement practices" as part of efforts to tackle irregular migration.
Among the options he suggested was focusing more directly on companies that employ undocumented workers.
"We should be more targeted, for example, towards businesses that hire undocumented labour," Vance wrote.
Source: CNA
