Newsom Trolls Trump’s DHS Over President’s Family History
The California governor mocked the Trump administration’s “Remigrate” tweet by sharing a History Channel graphic of the president’s own family immigration history.

Getty Images
California Gov. Gavin Newsom skewered the Department of Homeland Security’s tweet about “remigration” with a history lesson for Trump fans.
The official DHS X account posted a single word—“Remigrate”—with a follow-up post that pointed users to a government site promoting voluntary self-deportation.
Amid outrage at DHS’ use of a phrase popularized by far-right extremists, the California governor’s press office reposted the tweet with a reminder of President Donald Trump’s ancestry and a single-word reply: “Please.”

Gavin Newsom’s press office responded with a reminder of the immigration history of the president’s own family.
X
Alongside it was a biographical graphic of the Trump family from the History Channel, which noted that the president is the son and grandson of immigrants.
The graphic detailed how the family of his father, Fred, was German and his mother, Mary, was Scottish, and how none of the president’s grandparents had been born in the United States.

Donald Trump’s mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, was a Scottish immigrant, pictured here en route to New York.
Cathy Brett/Mirrorpix via Getty Images
Civil-rights groups say the term “remigration” is rooted in far-right ideology advocating mass deportations, including of U.S.-born children of immigrants.
Get the best of The Beast delivered right to your inbox
By clicking “SUBSCRIBE” you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Definitions commonly describe it as a program of ethnic cleansing via large-scale expulsions of non-white immigrants and their descendants.
Newsom, whose American heritage stretches back many generations, was not the only one to call out the irony of son-of-immigrant Trump’s DHS-led “remigration” policy.
One social media user flagged that Trump had been presented with a gold-framed copy of his grandfather Friedrich Trump’s birth certificate by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House in June—a nod to the president’s immigrant roots.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (left) presents Trump with a framed birth certificate of his grandfather Friedrich.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
Trump has previously used the word “remigration,” which is popular in global far-right circles, including once to criticize to Newsom’s policies.
With policy plans reportedly under discussion for an Office of Remigration, the president posted on Truth Social, “The Biden administration and Governor Newscum flooded America with 21 Million Illegal Aliens, destroying Schools, Hospitals and Communities, and consuming untold Billions of Dollars in Free Welfare.
“All of them have to go home, as do countless other Illegals and Criminals, who will turn us into a bankrupt Third World Nation. America was invaded and occupied. I am reversing the Invasion. It’s called Remigration.”

Newsom and his press office continually troll Trump administration on social media.
David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images
The term has been pushed by Martin Sellner, an Austrian far-right activist.
He went on to front Austria’s branch of Generation Identity, which anti-extremism researchers have called a transnational white-supremacist network.
In November 2023, Sellner laid out a “masterplan” for “remigration” at a closed-door meeting near Potsdam with figures from Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), neo-Nazis, and other extremists—an exposé that triggered mass protests across Germany.
AfD co-leader Alice Weidel has since publicly championed “remigration.” German authorities then barred Sellner from entering the country for three years.
When the Daily Beast contacted the Department of Homeland Security for comment, Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin asked, “Is the English language too difficult for you?” before posting the dictionary definition of “remigrate” as “to migrate again; migrate back; return.”
She added: “We urge all illegal aliens to remigrate and self-deport using the CBP Home app.”
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.
Sign in
Login dialog



ADVERTISEMENT
Sign in or create an account
Login dialog
Loading comments…
ADVERTISEMENT