"Meet the Press" host Chuck Todd, often a critic of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, has softened his tone toward the new GOP frontrunner, if only for the moment.

Thursday on MSNBC, Todd credited Trump, an aggressive critic of current immigration policy, for making a visit to the U.S.-Mexico border.

"I think the fact is, if he's going to talk about [immigration]," Todd said. "If he didn't go to the border we would be right to criticize him for spouting off about something without going to take a firsthand look. I look at it like, you know what, he's at least going to the border. To me, he would deserve more criticism if he were not going to the border. So, let's see what he has to say."

Trump's campaign said this week that on Thursday he would take a trip to the border Texas shares with Mexico. He was to be given a tour by a local border patrol union, though the union backed out at the last minute. "After careful consideration of all the factors involved in this event and communicating with members of the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) at the national level, it has been decided by [the union] to pull out of all events involving Donald Trump," the group said.

Undeterred, Trump's campaign said the candidate would still go to the border.

"Perhaps Trump probably should have done it through the [Texas] governor's office," Todd said. "Or, maybe the governor's office didn't help him. It probably would have opened that door a little bit more. You know how these union things work. Suddenly they're saying, 'If you do this you're going to do have to do it for all of these candidates.'"

In the past, Todd has voiced skepticism of Trump's candidacy, suggesting that the former reality TV star isn't serious about running for president and calling on the press to cover his campaign accordingly.