Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) said Friday that Democrats need to “wake up” and see the border crisis for what it is: a “disaster.”
“This is an unmitigated, shameful and unforgivable disaster,” said Phillips, who is running against President Biden for the White House. said on the forum NewsNation's Dan Abrams will host.
“The more we ignore it, the more we pave the way for Donald Trump to return to the White House, because, you know?” the leading presidential candidate continued. “He's actually listening. And I think it's time for Democrats to do that, too, but I fear that President Biden is at the point where he has lost the ability to hear legitimate voices.”
His comments reflect similar sentiments he shared in October after two trips to the U.S.-Mexico border. Phillips said at the time that the border was unstable and “inhumane.”
In an interview Friday, he accused the Biden administration of mishandling the border crisis, including insulting Border Patrol agents who showed mercy.
“It's unfair to Border Patrol agents who have shown extraordinary compassion and humanity that I wish more Americans could see,” Phillips told Abrams. “And they've been vilified by the Democratic Party.”
The Democratic candidate also attacked Biden for not attending the NewsNation forum and for not supporting the Democratic primary debate.
“Where is he? I know he probably couldn't be here today, but to tell the country he's never going to debate in a Democratic primary that would have such an outcome? Maybe it's discrimination.” “The key to transformation…is to show up,” he concluded.
Phillips began his presidential campaign in October and announced in late November that he would not seek reelection to his House seat.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), a prominent progressive in the Democratic Party, has also expressed “grave concerns” about Biden's border policies, but her claims are the exact opposite of Phillips's. Ta.
“There's so much fear-mongering that it's hard to know exactly where to start,” he said Thursday during a House Judiciary Committee hearing.
“But first, let me say this: The Biden administration is enforcing immigration laws,” Jayapal continued. “In fact, the administration has been so heavy-handed in recent months that we have serious concerns about how they are conducting border security.”
In a recent CBS News poll, nearly half of Americans surveyed said they were concerned about the situation at the border. In the same poll, 30% considered the situation a serious problem, 18% considered it somewhat serious, and 7% said it was not a problem at all.
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