On Friday’s “PBS NewsHour,” washington post Jonathan Capehart, deputy editor and MSNBC host, responded to reports that President Joe Biden is considering tightening border controls, saying that Biden is not concerned about immigration or 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. He said there was a need to “fudge” the line between him and the former president. “I think what he’s trying to do for himself is what he says the Republicans made me do.”
new york times Columnist David Brooks wrote, “On this issue, Joe Biden doesn’t want to draw a bright line. This country is with Donald Trump. If you ask him, who do you approve of on a variety of issues? Trump has a 12-point lead on overall ability. Trump has a 25-point lead on who can handle the economy better. Trump has a 39-point lead on immigration. So this is a question of fudging that line.”
Co-host Amna Nawaz asked, “Jonathan, will a move like this further alienate members of the Biden coalition that helped get him to the White House in the first place?”
Capehart replied: Yes, it’s even more alienating. But I have to agree with David that immigration is an issue where the president has to fudge the line. But he says what I want him to say is that the Republicans made me do it. There was a bipartisan Senate immigration bill, but it never came to a vote. I was involved in the negotiations. They never gave us a vote. So we have to do something. And the election of the next Congressman, Tom Suozzi (Democrat, New York), shows just how prominent the immigration issue is. ”
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