Trump says he will deport 2 to 3 million immigrants immediately

President-elect tells ’60 Minutes’ that ‘gang members, drug dealers’ will be expelled before decision on remainder; says border wall may be a fence in parts

Donald Trump will keep his vow to deport millions of undocumented migrants from the United States, he said in an interview to be broadcast Sunday, saying as many as three million could be removed after he takes office.

“What we are going to do is get the people that are criminal and have criminal records, gang members, drug dealers, where a lot of these people, probably two million, it could be even three million, we are getting them out of our country or we are going to incarcerate,” Trump said in an excerpt released ahead of broadcast by CBS’s “60 Minutes” program.. “But we’re getting them out of our country, they’re here illegally.”

The billionaire real estate baron made security at the US – Mexico border a central plank of his insurgent presidential campaign, which resulted in last Tuesday’s shock election victory against his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

He added that once the United States’ border with Mexico is “secure,” a decision will be made in regards to the fate of the remainder of illegal immigrants in the US.

“After the border is secure and after everything gets normalized, we’re going to make a determination on the people that they’re talking about who are terrific people, they’re terrific people but we are gonna make a determination at that,” Trump said. “But before we make that determination…it’s very important, we are going to secure our border.”

He also said in the interview that he will carry out his campaign promise to build a wall along the border.

Top Trump supporter and a former Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich said earlier this week that the wall was “a great campaign device,” fueling speculation that Trump may in fact not go through with the construction of the border wall, in particular after he has began to walk back from much of the rhetoric he used during the campaign.

Illustrative photo of a fence along US-Mexico border. (Wikimedia Commons)

Trump added that the barrier to be erected on the US border with Mexico may not consist entirely of brick and mortar, but that fencing could be used in some areas.

“There could be some fencing,” Trump said in his first primetime interview since being elected president last week.

“But (for) certain areas, a wall is more appropriate. I’m very good at this, it’s called construction,” he told CBS.