Welker asked how Trump plans to end birthright citizenship and whether he would do it through executive action. Trump responded: “If we can, through executive action.”

“I was going to do it through executive action but then we had to fix Covid first, to be honest with you,” Trump said. “We have to end it. It’s ridiculous.”

The 14th Amendment, which was ratified in 1868, states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” A constitutional amendment approved by Congress requires ratification by three-fourths of the states.

Trump also in the interview said he wanted to “work something out” in regards to Dreamers, or children who immigrated with their families at a very young age and have since grown up in the United States.

“We have to do something about the Dreamers because these are people that have been brought here at a very young age,” Trump said. “And many of these are middle-aged people now. They don’t even speak the language of their country. And yes, we’re going to do something about the dreamers.”

Trump also said he would work with Democrats on a plan for Dreamers but that they have “made it very, very difficult to do anything” and that President Joe Biden should have “done something” on Dreamers during the past four years. (Efforts at bipartisan immigration reform in the Senate earlier this year collapsed due to opposition from then-candidate Trump.)

He added: “Republicans are very open to Dreamers.”

“I think we can work with the Democrats and work something out,” Trump said.

On Dreamers, he added, “They’ve become successful. They have great jobs. In some cases they have small businesses. Some cases they might have large businesses. And we’re going to have to do something with them.”

But when Trump was asked about his plans of mass deportation — and whether he still plans to deport everyone who is here illegally — Trump said, “I think you have to do it.” He said he will start with people with a criminal history, then expand out.

“It’s a hard – it’s a very tough thing to do. But you have to have rules, regulations, laws. They came in illegally. You know the people that have been treated very unfairly are the people that have been on line for ten years to come into the country,” Trump said. “And we’re going to make it very easy for people to come in in terms of they have to pass the test.”

He added, “They have to be able to tell you what the Statue of Liberty is. They have to tell you a little bit about our country. They have to love our country. They can’t come out of prisons.”