What would a President Pritzker do on immigration, border crisis?

As speculation grows over whether President Biden will remain the Democratic presidential nominee in 2024 after his disastrous performance in last week’s debate, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is one of the people being mentioned as a possible replacement.

But the ongoing crisis on the southern border remains a top concern for voters across the country, and there are signs that Pritzker may take a different approach to the crisis than the current administration.

Illinois is one of the states hit by the knock-on effects of the migration crisis, with tens of thousands of migrants streaming across the southern border into cities like Chicago.

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Pritzker broadly supports much of President Biden’s efforts at the southern border but has been among the Democrats who have criticized the federal government’s response to the crisis.

Pritzker wrote to Biden in October that he believed in “the right of all human beings, especially those facing persecution, to find refuge and live with dignity in this great nation of ours,” but warned that the crisis was “overwhelming” states and criticized the federal government.

“Unfortunately, the welcome and assistance that Illinois has provided to these asylum seekers has not been matched by the support provided by the federal government. Most significantly, the federal government’s failure to intervene and coordinate at the border has created an intolerable situation for the state of Illinois,” he said.

“There is much more that can and must be done at the federal level to address the national humanitarian crisis that state and local governments are currently shouldering without assistance,” he said.

Specifically, they called for several measures, including waiving fees for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and a “significant” increase in logistical coordination, including the federal government taking over coordination of buses that transport migrants around the country.

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Migrants who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border are processed by U.S. Border Patrol near Jacumba Hot Springs, near San Diego, California, on June 13, 2024. (Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images)

Pritzker also called for establishing a “federal coordinating officer and task force” based at the border dedicated to resettling migrants, as well as expanding funding to states, local governments and non-governmental organizations (as the Biden administration has done) and speeding up work permits.

He also called on President Biden to approve a request from Illinois to grant waivers on Medicaid and housing vouchers for immigrants.

In January, he and several other governors wrote a letter to President Biden again calling for further federal action and supporting the administration’s request for additional funding from Congress. They also supported the administration’s argument that the immigration system is broken and in need of reform.

“Without serious reforms based on evidence-based solutions, the challenges facing states and localities will only grow,” the letter said.

Pritzker also supported the Biden administration’s move last year to redesignate Venezuela as a TPS country, which would protect hundreds of thousands more people from deportation and provide them with work permits.

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“Reducing waiting times for work permits and expanding protected status for people coming from Venezuela will put them to work and put them on the path to building a better future for themselves and their families,” he said.

Meanwhile, domestically, Governor Pritzker continues to focus on funding by approving significant amounts of money to help states deal with the number of migrants they face.

He also announced that the state would invest $160 million to deal with the crisis, including funding for shelters and wraparound services, after pushing President Biden for more funding last year.

This year, Pritzker again criticized the Legislature for inaction and announced an additional $160 million in aid.

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“Thousands of asylum seekers continue to arrive in Chicago in desperate need of assistance, while Congress continues to refuse to act, making it clear the state, county and city must do more to keep people safe,” he said.

Get the latest updates on the ongoing border crisis from the Fox News Digital immigration hub.