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Reid: Trump Would Fail Citizenship Test

Minority leader has not held back in his criticism of GOP nominee

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid has been a continuous critic of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid has been a continuous critic of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid called on Donald Trump to take a U.S. citizenship test, ahead of the Republican presidential nominee’s speech Monday where he is expected to lay out new immigration policies.

“Since Donald Trump wants to impose new tests on immigrants, he should take the one test every immigrant has to pass to become a United States citizen,” the Nevada Democrat said in a statement. “He would almost certainly fail, given his general ignorance and weak grasp of basic facts about American history, principles, and functioning of our government.”

Trump has taken a tough stance on illegal immigration, calling for building a wall along the border with Mexico to prevent undocumented immigrants from entering the country. He has also proposed temporarily banning Muslims from traveling to the U.S.

“The fact is, Donald Trump is nothing more than a spoiled, unpatriotic drain on society who has earned nothing and helped no one,” Reid said. 

[Reid Says Trump Should Get Fake Intel Briefings]

Trump is expected to tackle foreign policy and national security in a speech in Ohio Monday. Trump aides who previewed the address said the billionaire mogul would unveil a new policy proposal where the government would vet immigrants by whether they supported American values, according to The Associated Press.

Reid has been a constant Trump critic, often taking to the Senate floor to chastise the GOP nominee’s statements and policies. The minority leader directly contrasted immigrants with Trump seven times in his statement Monday. His last line invoked Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.”

“Immigrants make America great,” Reid said. “Trump makes America small, petty and mean.”

Contact Bowman at bridgetbowman@rollcall.com and follow her on Twitter at @bridgetbhc.

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