Donald Trump is scheduled to and early Thursday afternoon in the border town of Laredo, Texas, where U.S. border patrol agents will give him an unofficial tour of one of the most embattled slices of the U.S.-Mexico border. He’ll also address a group of law enforcement officials at an event after the tour
The visit marks the culmination of more than a month of controversy-filled campaigning, mostly centered around Trump’s comments about illegal immigration and border security.
And Trump is looking for vindication as he marches right to the bounds of Mexico, the country he accuses of marching its criminals into the United States.
“I’m the only one that speaks their language,” Trump said of the border patrol agents in an interview with CNN earlier this month.
But Trump’s visit also comes at a time when Trump desperately needs to shift the focus of his campaign away from roundly scorned comments he made Saturday questioning Republican Sen. John McCain’s heroism as a prisoner of war for more than five years.
“He’s not a war hero,” Trump said of McCain on Saturday at a presidential forum in Iowa, before quickly adding, “He is a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured, OK? I hate to tell you. He is a war hero because he was captured. OK, you can have — I believe perhaps he is a war hero.”
While most of Trump’s 2016 contenders took their time in condemning his immigration comments, they all swiftly pounced on Trump’s McCain remarks, which were seen as an opportunity to isolate Trump on an issue no one in the GOP would support him on.
Trump hasn’t backed down — insisting once again that his remarks were being misinterpreted — but it’s become increasingly clear over the last few days that Trump is ready to move on.
But don’t expect a shift in tone from The Donald.
Despite the onslaught of attacks he’s faced from the Republican establishment and nearly every one of his primary opponents, Trump shows no signs of flinching even after he spent the week slamming opponents like Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Twitter and giving out Sen. Lindsey Graham’s cell phone number.
Trump did suggest in an interview Wednesday with CNN’s Anderson Cooper that he would one day prepared to tone it down: as President.