Pete Buttigieg conceded that Trump's border crackdown worked and that Democrats moved too slowly on immigration, a notable admission from a potential 2028 contender.

• Buttigieg agreed border crossings dropped sharply once Trump took office and gave the administration credit for restoring real border security.
• He broke from party orthodoxy, saying Democrats should have acted sooner and that ignoring border problems for years was a mistake.
• He also criticized ICE for going too far, citing citizens and legal residents being detained or mistreated, and said deportation efforts have sometimes overreached.
• Buttigieg argued the real fix is a "grand bargain": secure the border, allow lawful immigration at levels the economy actually needs, and create an earned path to status for long-settled undocumented workers.
• He warned that near-zero immigration could hurt the economy long-term, even as he supports stricter controls on who gets in.

Outlook: Immigration remains a live wedge issue heading into 2028, with Buttigieg positioning himself as a Democrat willing to acknowledge border failures while pushing for a middle-ground deal neither party has managed to pass since the 1980s.