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By Dan Gooding
Associate News Editor
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A Republican representative from Florida is running a television ad calling out President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, telling him that some policies have gone too far.
Maria Elvira Salazar, who represents Florida's 27th Congressional District, which covers much of South Miami, has advocated for immigration reform alongside some Democratic colleagues in the House. While Trump and the wider GOP have advocated for tough immigration policies, some Republican lawmakers covering areas with large immigrant populations have found themselves in a difficult position.
In the video ad, which appeared to have been shot outside the White House, Salazar warned Trump to "be careful" about what his advisers were telling him, adding: "The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today."
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The day after the 2024 election, Salazar said in an interview she didn't believe the incoming administration would target undocumented immigrants with no criminal record.
Newsweek reached out to Salazar's office and the White House for comment on Thursday morning.
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Maria Elvira Salazar's Message to Trump
In the ad, Salazar, who is campaigning for reelection in the November 3 midterms, directly spoke to Trump about his immigration policies.
"Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far," she said. "In July, 50 percent of the 50,000 people that were detained had no criminal record. Be careful what your advisers are telling you about immigration policy.
"You can be for immigration what Lincoln was for slavery and Reagan was for communism. I'm not talking about giving them amnesty. I'm talking about giving them a dignified life in this promised land."
The congresswoman's message marks one of the most significant breakaways by a Republican over the Trump administration's immigration policy, with the majority of the GOP lawmakers in Congress either showing overall support or remaining neutral on the topic.
The comments also tap into Trump's overall positive viewpoints on the two former presidents, as well as his longtime desire to be seen as a consequential president—something his staffers and Cabinet members have also sought to portray him as.
Salazar's video sparked pushback from fellow and former lawmakers, with the Democratic Party's main X account sharing a video of the Congresswoman advocating for a large increase in ICE funding on NBC's Meet the Press.
Former Florida Democratic Representative for the neighboring 26th district, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, also took to X, writing that the ad was "deceiving."
"Today she recognizes that she’ll probably lose her bid in 2026 in a Latino community where the inhumane treatment of immigrants is not a policy that Miami supports," she wrote. "I warned Maria Elvira about this a year ago, but now it’s too late to walk back and pretend she did anything to protect Miami from this disaster."'
DHS Chief: Illegal Entry Makes Migrants 'Criminals'
On Friday, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin pushed back on Salazar's criticism, arguing that migrants who entered the country illegally should not be considered non-criminals simply because they have no other criminal convictions.
"When you broke the law and you came in this country illegally, you chose to become a criminal offense," he told CNN's Dana Bash.
The DHS chief added that immigration officers do not "pick and choose" which laws to enforce, saying that Congress established the laws and the department's job is to carry them out.
"A criminal is a criminal," he said.
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Salazar's Dignity Act
The Florida representative, who was born to Cuban immigrants, has been one of the key voices on immigration reform during the current Congress, co-sponsoring the Dignity Act, which would grant new legal pathways to those in the U.S. without legal status.
Speaking to Newsweek in July 2025, Salazar said the GOP, with its majority in both chambers, had a "historic opportunity to fix the immigration system."
Congress has failed to pass widespread immigration reform for nearly 40 years, with the last changes being modifications to the 1950s Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) in the early 1990s. Under President Joe Biden, efforts were made for bipartisan reforms, but the measures ultimately failed when Republicans refused to provide widespread support.
Salazar introduced the bill along with Texas Democrat Veronica Escobar, another member of the Hispanic Caucus, as Latino voters began voicing concerns over how the second Trump administration was tackling immigration.
Under the bipartisan proposal, undocumented migrants could apply for temporary legal status through the "Dignity Program," provided they meet specific conditions. These include passing background checks, paying restitution and taxes, and maintaining employment.
The bill does not offer a direct path to citizenship—something Salazar has repeatedly emphasized.
It also includes provisions to strengthen border security, address asylum backlogs, and expand certain legal immigration pathways tied to workforce needs.
Her Democratic opponent Eliott Rodriguez took to X on Thursday, saying, "@MaElviraSalazar You've been lying to our community for years about immigration and your 'Dignity Act'. DHS won't unmask ICE agents but they've just unmasked you. You are a fraud!"
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Florida's 27th Congressional District: What to Know
Salazar's district covers much of southern Miami-Dade County, including areas like Doral, Coral Gables, Hialeah and Kendall, which have large immigrant populations.
Recent estimates put the Hispanic population of the district at 73 percent, with around 55 percent foreign-born, per a U.S. Census Bureau community survey, with significant Cuban, Venezuelan and Colombian communities.
A 2026 report from left-leaning FWD.us estimated that around 216,000 people living in Salazar's district were undocumented or living with undocumented immigrants, while around 12,000 had Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
South Florida has been a major focus of enforcement activity, with advocates reporting a surge in immigrant arrests over the past 19 months, including at work sites and at ICE check-ins.
During the 2024 election, those who were eligible to vote in her district elected Salazar with 60.4 percent support to Democrat Lucia Baez-Geller's 39.6 percent. The district also voted for Trump by a margin of 15 percentage points.
The day after that election in November 2024, Salazar addressed concerns about the GOP's plans in an appearance on PBS NewsHour, saying she was sure the new administration would not target those in the U.S. for over five years with American children and no criminal record.
"I am sure that they're going to hone in on the criminals who arrived less than four years ago because I wrote the Dignity Act, and I am the first one who understands that you have to give some type of dignity to those who have been here for more than five years, people who have roots in the country, not people who are coming to commit crimes," she said.
What Polls Show Ahead of the Midterms
Polling on Salazar's district has been minimal so far ahead of the midterms, with a survey from Blueprint Polling on March 12 showing her with 46 percent of the potential vote to 43 percent for Rodriguez—a far narrower margin than her 2024 victory.
A more recent survey from Miami-based Bendixen & Amandi International, working for Rodriguez's campaign, showed him with a 7-point lead.
For Salazar, the focus appears to be more on the national picture and the growing dissatisfaction with how the White House is handling immigration. Recent polling has shown support slipping away for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), while Trump has also appeared to lose support on one of the key policies that got him reelected.
A recent New York Times/Siena poll showed Democrats were more trusted on seven key issues ahead of the November election, including immigration, despite efforts by the GOP to place all blame for the 2020-2024 border surge on President Joe Biden.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Gabe Whisnant, Dave Siminoff, Anna Commander, Gray R. Thomas
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