Former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg defended the Biden-Harris administration’s approach to tackling illegal immigration during a heated debate with Fox News’ Shannon Bream on Sunday.
Buttigieg appeared as a special guest on “Fox News Sunday” and attempted to deflect criticism of Vice President Kamala Harris, who he and Democrats have widely dubbed the “border czar” in the media as they seek to upend his mission to tackle the border in 2021.
“There’s a lot of misunderstanding, so I want to be very clear about this: She wasn’t in charge of the border. The border is handled by Homeland Security. But she did something important. She was put in charge of diplomacy with Central American countries, knowing that that was part of a bigger picture that was affecting the border. And would you know? These Central American countries are one of the few countries where we’re seeing a decline in the number of countries of origin that we’re seeing at the border,” Buttigieg said.
“No big deal,” Bream countered.
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Former Mayor Pete Buttigieg defended the Biden-Harris administration’s approach to tackling illegal immigration during a heated debate with Fox News’ Shannon Bream on Sunday. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Buttigieg also blamed former President Trump’s interference for President Biden’s failure to pass comprehensive immigration reform.
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“[Biden] He called on Congress to resolve the issue. [immigration] “Because that would last longer. But when Trump got into office, he convinced Republicans to drop the bipartisan plan because he didn’t want the problem to get better. Remember, the worse the situation at the border, the better it is for Donald Trump. So he has a vested interest in the border remaining a mess,” Buttigieg said.
Vice President Harris with migrants at the southern border. (Getty Images)
But Bream disputed that claim, saying Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and other Republicans oppose provisions that Democrats included in the border bill.
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“Let’s be realistic, we know why they didn’t move forward,” Buttigieg argued. “They moved forward because Donald Trump came out of nowhere and said he didn’t want Joe Biden to win.”
“Many of them felt it was a flawed bill with too many loopholes to support,” Bream said.
Migrants walk along a highway through Suchiate, Chiapas, southern Mexico, on their way north to the U.S. border, Sunday, July 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Edgar H. Clemente)
Buttigieg is one of many prominent Democrats who have come out to defend Harris on immigration policy since her rapid emergence as a leading 2024 Democratic candidate.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York accused Republicans of “inventing” the title of “border secretary,” his comments coming just before six members of the House Democratic caucus voted to criticize her handling of the migrant crisis.
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“There is only one bill being debated today, and I believe that is a false and fraudulent resolution concocted by one of our congresswomen from New York who is lying about the vice president, and she continues to embarrass herself,” Rep. Jeffries told reporters at his weekly press conference.
“She never held the position of border commissioner. They’re making that up because the radical MAGA Republicans are totally broken,” he added.
