Trump concedes immigration policy may have been 'too tough' after midterm losses

United States President Donald Trump has acknowledged that his administration's controversial deportation drive cost the Republican Party dearly in last week's midterm elections, and that his immigration policy may have been too harsh for voters.

In his first television interview since his party lost control of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Trump said some voters had been displeased by the deportation measures, which sparked widespread protests. 'I think it may have been too tough,' he said in the interview broadcast on Sunday.

Trump also expressed hope that an immigration agreement could be reached with the new Democratic-controlled Congress. 'A deal means getting something done; I think that's something that can really be done,' he said.

The interview aired after he appointed Stephen Miller, the chief architect of his hardline immigration policy, as White House chief of staff in place of Susie Wiles - a move that raised questions about the policy's direction. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer criticised the appointment, writing: 'Trump says his immigration crackdown went too far. But his answer is to put the man responsible for it in charge of the White House. That's not a course correction; it's a promotion.'