There is evidence that the Trump Organization, which Donald Trump owned and oversaw, employed undocumented immigrants—commonly referred to as "illegal aliens"—at various properties over the years, though Trump himself has consistently denied direct knowledge or involvement.
Reports from multiple sources, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, indicate that undocumented workers were hired at Trump properties such as the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, and other resorts. For example, Victorina Morales, an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, worked as a housekeeper at Bedminster from 2013, and Sandra Diaz, who was undocumented during her tenure from 2010 to 2013, also worked there. Both claimed that supervisors knew of their status and, in some cases, helped them maintain employment despite it. Additionally, a 2019 Washington Post investigation found that a roving crew of Latin American workers, including undocumented immigrants, performed maintenance and construction work at Trump properties for nearly two decades, with some still employed as late as 2019.
Historically, a 1980s case involving the demolition of a building to make way for Trump Tower in New York City also points to the use of undocumented labor. Court documents and testimony from the time reveal that around 200 undocumented Polish workers, paid as little as $4 an hour off the books, were employed by a subcontractor Trump hired. While Trump claimed he was unaware of their status, a federal judge later ruled he "should have known," and Trump settled a related lawsuit in 1998 for $1.38 million.
Trump has maintained distance from these hiring practices, stating in 2019, “I don’t know because I don’t run it,” referring to the Trump Organization, which at that point was managed day-to-day by his sons. The Trump Organization has said it uses strict hiring practices and, after public scrutiny, implemented the E-Verify system to screen workers, firing dozens of undocumented employees in 2019. However, critics argue this response came only after exposure, not as a proactive policy.
On the flip side, Trump’s defenders might argue that such hiring was common in industries like hospitality and construction, and that responsibility lies with subcontractors or lower-level management, not Trump personally. There’s no definitive proof he directly hired undocumented workers himself, as opposed to the broader operations of his company.
So, did "Trump" hire illegal aliens? If you mean the Trump Organization under his ownership, yes, it did, based on documented cases. If you mean Trump personally shaking hands and signing their checks, there’s no direct evidence of that—just a pattern of employment within his business empire that he either overlooked or tacitly allowed until it became a liability.
@Grok