CNN commentator Van Jones said President Donald Trump's State of the Union address Tuesday night was akin to selling "candy with poison in it," attacking his rhetoric about illegal immigration and MS-13.
Trump laid out a multi-faceted plan to deal with border security as well as a path to citizenship for millions of so-called "Dreamers," the term for immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children.
Jones took exception to Trump's lengthy discussion of clamping down on the violent MS-13 gang, saying he was trying to draw parallels between its members and Dreamers.
"He was selling sweet-tasting candy with poison in it," Jones said. "What he said about those young people, he implied—and he did it deliberately—that Dreamers are gang members."
Jones squabbled with fellow panelist Rick Santorum, saying it was wrong to "smear these young people" when a large percentage of the country wants the Dreamers to stay in the country.
"We are in a moment now where we could come together and get something done on a bipartisan basis," Jones said. "Republicans cannot continue to smear these young Dreamers and associate them with gangs that they're not a part of."
Rick Santorum said it was wrong to say "all Dreamers are Dreamers."
"There are Dreamers who are criminals," he said.