Scoop: New White House video has "Angel Moms" blasting Selena Gomez on immigration
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Screenshot: Courtesy of the White House; Photo: Presley Ann/Getty Images
A new White House video features mothers whose children's deaths were linked to undocumented immigrants rebuking actress Selena Gomez for her Instagram post in which she cried over President Trump's plans for mass deportations.
Why it matters: The video is the latest sign that Trump's new administration will use campaign-like tactics — and the power of social media — to talk tough on immigration and other divisive issues it sees as political winners.
- "You don't know who you're crying for," Tammy Nobles, an "Angel Mom" whose daughter, Kayla Hamilton, was killed in July 2022 by a gang member, says in the video, addressing Gomez.
- "What about our children who were brutally murdered and raped and beat to death and left on the floor by these illegal immigrants?"
Catch up quick: Gomez, the granddaughter of undocumented immigrants, posted her video to her 422 million followers Monday, bemoaning the Trump-ordered raids on unauthorized immigrants.
- "All my people are getting attacked, the children. I don't understand," she said in the post, which was quickly deleted — but not before becoming a viral sensation.
- "I'm so sorry, I wish I could do something but I can't. I don't know what to do. I'll try everything, I promise."
Trump critics and others — including rapper Flavor Flav and Geraldo Rivera — defended Gomez. But she drew scorn across conservative social media and from figures such as Trump border czar Tom Homan and pro-Trump influencer Charlie Kirk.
- Gomez has lost more than 800,000 Instagram followers this week, amid the conservative backlash.
Zoom in: The White House's new video features Nobles and two other "Angel Moms," who became centerpieces of Trump's 2024 campaign. The women are shown reacting to Gomez's video with a mixture of disbelief and anger.
- "It's hard to believe that it's actually genuine and real because she's an actress," Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, was killed in June 2024, says in the video.
- "I just feel like it's a ruse to deceive people and to garner sympathy for lawlessness," says Patty Morin, whose daughter, Rachel, was killed in August 2023.
Zoom out: Trump has made targeting illegal immigration a central part of his platform since he launched his first campaign for president in 2015.
- Less than two weeks into his second term, he's ordered immigration raids across the country as part of a plan to deport "millions" of undocumented immigrants, vowed to use the military to help boost border security and carry out deportations, and announced plans to detain 30,000 immigrants at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
- On Monday, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement announced it had arrested more than 3,500 unauthorized immigrants during Trump's first week in office.
