New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that his office has already had “indirect” discussions with Vice President Kamala Harris’ team and that the Democratic front-runner will soon announce a plan for how to address the border crisis.
Harris was endorsed by President Biden as his successor after Biden announced Sunday that he would not run for reelection. Adams, who has been dealing with an overwhelming influx of migrants into sanctuary cities, was asked if he had been in contact with Harris.
“We’ve been indirectly talking to her team and I believe she will be announcing a plan for what she wants to do regarding this border crisis,” he said.
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On September 27, 2022, the migrants left for a shelter in New York City. (Michael Nagle/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Immigration and the ongoing crisis at the southern border are likely to remain key issues for voters and remain at the top of their agendas in the coming months.
Harris was tasked by Biden in 2021 to lead a diplomatic effort to address the issue. The “root causes” of migration In Northern Triangle countries, she has been dubbed a “border czar” by Republicans, a charge the White House denies.
The Biden administration blames the crisis on Republicans in Congress who have failed to approve funding and reforms to a system they call “dysfunctional.”
White House Officials recently said overall contacts have fallen by more than 50% and releases have fallen by 70% since Biden announced an executive order in June restricting entry into the U.S. Officials also said the administration has expelled and deported more than 50,000 people from more than 100 countries.
“While the president’s actions have achieved great results, it is clear that the only lasting solution to the challenges we face at the border — a solution that provides the additional authority, resources and personnel needed to ensure border security — will come through action by Congress,” the official said.
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But Republicans blame the administration’s “open borders” policy for the crisis and have recently sought to link Harris to the administration’s actions.
“Candidates should not shy away from aggressively tying their opponents to Kamala Harris’ extreme policies,” a memo from the Republican national Senate campaign said this week.
Adams has been a frequent critic of the administration and has called for more federal action and funding for states and cities that are taking in large numbers of migrants. She said Tuesday that the White House should revive a bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate earlier this year, and she also praised Biden’s recent executive actions.
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“I think it’s been a great start… Some of the executive orders that have come out of the White House have been very helpful. We have to brush off the bipartisan plan and say now is the time to get it done, but the most important thing we can do is get people to work.”
He also made his own proposals, such as creating “decompression officers” to control where migrants were headed.
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“Most of the people coming in are on parole. At that level, we need decompression officers. We should identify municipalities where the population is declining. There are places in the country where the population is declining. We should identify those places and tell the inmates on parole that they can stay there for three years to address their population issues, address their employment issues and after three years they can travel around the country,” he said.
“We can turn this crisis into an opportunity if we manage it and don’t allow it to manage us.”
