‘Fearmongering’ by Reporting Things That Happened Is ‘Part of the Problem’ of Support for Mass Deportations

On Tuesday’s MSNBC broadcast of “The ReidOut,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and host Joy Reid blamed “fear mongering” in the form of factual reports about crimes committed by immigrants for contributing to support for mass deportations among Democrats and Hispanics.

While discussing Democrats who support mass deportations and Hispanics, Reid said:[T]This is one of the reasons why people think this way. It’s from the three cable networks. Our banner said, “President Biden Will Soon Announce Legal Protections for Undocumented Spouses of U.S. Citizens.” CNN’s banner said, “President Biden Will Soon Announce Legal Protections for Undocumented Spouses of U.S. Citizens.”[ing] “‘New protections for undocumented spouses.’ Here’s a Fox banner. ‘Immigrant arrested for raping 13-year-old New York City girl.’ So I think that’s part of the problem, that there’s too much fear-mongering.”

Jayapal responded: “Exactly. That’s part of the problem. Exactly. When people are financially unstable, when child care is expensive, when housing is expensive, they’re worried about themselves. So when people are in a situation of economic insecurity and they say why are these people getting what they’re not getting, it kind of pits people against them, whether you agree that they’re contributing to the country or not. The economics of immigration are absolutely indisputable. We’ve put a lot of money into it through immigration. The immigration surge has already put a lot of money into it and will continue to put a lot of money into it.”