Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, a Republican, criticized President Trump’s immigration policies during a recent appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” asserting the president is “getting bad advice.” Stitt stated there is “broad agreement” that Trump should “close the border” and remove “violent criminals” from the country while emphasizing concerns over federal overreach.

“Americans are asking themselves, ‘What is the endgame? What is the solution?’ And we believe in federalism and state rights,” Stitt told Dana Bash. “Nobody likes feds coming into their state. Is it to deport every single non-U.S. citizen? I don’t think that’s what Americans want. We have to stop politicizing this.”

The governor proposed granting states authority to issue workforce permits, noting this power currently resides solely with the federal government. He also suggested charging employers $5,000 for hiring noncitizens to “pay down the national debt and incentivize them to hire Americans.” Stitt argued that immigration policies should focus on fixing employer-employee relationships rather than becoming politicized, stating: “Right now, tempers are just going crazy, and we need to calm this down.”

Stitt’s comments followed recent incidents where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers fatally shot two citizens in Minnesota and another state within weeks. Vermont Governor Phil Scott condemned the shootings as “not acceptable,” calling federal immigration operations a “complete failure” of law enforcement coordination or “deliberate federal intimidation.” Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., similarly urged Trump to reconsider deploying federal agents if local leaders risked public safety.

The Department of Homeland Security reported over 675,000 deportations and roughly 2.2 million voluntary departures since President Trump returned to office, though Stitt insisted states—not the federal government—must resolve immigration challenges through practical solutions.