The proposal, reportedly authored principally by Trump’s adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner, envisions changes to asylum laws in order to prevent abuses of loopholes by migrants crossing the southern border illegally, as well as overhauling the issuance of “green cards” on a merit-based points system, including a requirement that immigrants learn English and pass a civics test.  

“This is the big, beautiful, bold plan,” Trump said at the White House Rose Garden on Thursday, adding adding that it would be nice to have something on a smaller scale implemented sooner.

That was a direct nod to Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), sitting in the audience, who rolled out his own immigration proposal on Thursday – a stopgap solution for “caravans” of migrants from Central America seeking asylum in the US. Earlier this week, after meeting with Kushner about Trump’s proposal, Graham said the president’s plan was aiming for the 2020 election.

“I don’t think it’s designed to get Democratic support as much as it is to unify the Republican Party around border security,” the senator said.

Trump himself admitted as much on Thursday, saying that if he can’t get support from Democrats for the proposal, “we’ll get it approved immediately after the election, when we take back the House, keep the Senate, and of course, hold the presidency.”