The White House maintains that President Biden wants to send more Border Patrol agents to the U.S. southern border, but blames Republicans for not allowing it.
During a press briefing on Monday, Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre how long Biden had known that Vice President Kamala Harris thought Biden was not doing a good job on the border.
Jean-Pierre appeared surprised by the question and asked the Fox reporter to repeat it.
“She has pledged to hire thousands more border patrol agents than we currently have under President Biden’s administration,” Doocy said. “How long have you all known that Vice President Harris does not believe President Biden’s border security is effective?”
Trump urges ‘Remain in Mexico’ to resolve historic border crisis
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended President Biden’s record on the border but blamed Republicans and former President Trump for not allowing the president to deploy more Border Patrol agents.
Jean-Pierre told Doocy he was making a “big leap” and “assuming” that Harris doesn’t think Biden’s border policies would be effective.
“Her campaign ads talk about the need for more Border Patrol agents,” Doocy said. “If President Biden is doing such a good job, why do we need more Border Patrol agents?”
In one of Harris’ recent presidential campaign ads, a narrator says, “As vice president, she supported the toughest border control bill in decades. And as president, she’ll hire thousands more Border Patrol agents and crack down on fentanyl and human trafficking.”
How will President Harris address the immigration and border crisis?
A group of more than 100 migrants attempting to illegally enter the United States charged the border wall on Thursday, March 21, 2024. In the process, the migrants knocked down a Texas National Guardsman before being stopped by the border wall. (James Breeden for the New York Post/Mega)
Jean-Pierre defended Harris’ policies, saying both the president and vice president believe more agents are needed.
“The president wants more Border Patrol agents. You know who’s standing in his way? Republicans in Congress. They’re standing in his way. You know who else is standing in his way? Former President Donald Trump. He’s standing in his way.”
Jean-Pierre continued to defend the president’s record, saying Biden is committed to increasing security along the border and that a bipartisan agreement is on the table that he has worked on with Senate Republicans and Democrats over “months.”
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A group of more than 100 migrants stormed the border. (James Breedon/New York Post/Mega)
“They were told by the former president not to move forward because it would have helped Joe Biden,” Jean-Pierre alleged. “That was their decision.”
Biden used his first term in office to end many of the Trump administration’s border and immigration policies.
During a CNN presidential debate in June, Trump hailed the success of the “Remain in Mexico” policy, a controversial border policy that he has repeatedly touted and that many conservatives have called for in a potential second Trump term.
During the debate, Trump repeatedly criticized President Biden for the ongoing crisis at the southern border and attempted to contrast his own record with Biden’s. Central to Trump’s efforts to reduce migration numbers has been the implementation of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), commonly known as “Remain in Mexico.”
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U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials during a visit to the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas, on January 8, 2023. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)
The Biden administration halted the program in 2021, arguing that the policy was ineffective, exposed migrants to poor conditions and danger in Mexico and led to the establishment of large migrant camps along the border while people waited for appointments, something immigration advocates also argued.
Since then, the Biden administration has introduced a number of its own measures to regulate migration and ease pressure at the border following a massive influx of migrants that has surged in 2021. A centerpiece of that policy is the expansion of the CBP One app, which allows migrants to enter legally and make appointments for parole into the U.S. The app currently allows about 1,500 migrants per day to enter.
In many ways, Harris will represent a continuity to the Biden-Harris Administration’s current approach. Like Biden, Harris supports reversing Trump-era border policies and has called for a comprehensive immigration bill, which the administration introduced on its first day in office. The bill not only includes important reforms and funding measures, but also provides a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants already in the United States.
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Similarly, Harris supports a bipartisan Senate bill that Biden also supported but that failed to pass in the Senate. Like Biden, Harris blames Trump for the bill’s failure to pass the Senate.
Fox News’ Michael Lee and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
