Kamala Harris makes first trip to US-Mexico border as VP, says progress is being made
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Vice President Kamala Harris begins a meeting with LGBTQ stakeholders, Wednesday, June 23, 2021, in her ceremonial office on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
and last updated 2021-06-25 16:35:36-04
Vice President Kamala Harris visited El Paso, Texas, on Friday in her first trip to the U.S.-Mexico border since assuming office.
During her trip on Friday, Harris visited a border patrol station, met with advocates from faith-based non-government organizations and delivered public remarks.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas joined Harris in El Paso.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
25 Jun 2021
Vice President Kamala Harris failed to mention illegal immigration’s impact on American citizens and communities across the United States during her first visit to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday.
Harris, who visited the El Paso, Texas, region told Americans not to “lose sight of the fact that we’re talking about human beings” when talking about the border crisis and the hundreds of thousands of border crossers who have made their way to the U.S. since President Joe Biden took office.
“Let’s not lose sight that we’re talking about stories … involve horrendous tales of abuse and fear and harm, not only for folks who are coming from their home countries experiencing that, but along the path of their migration,” Harris said, adding:
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25 Jun 2021
Former Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Chief Mark Morgan says Vice President Kamala Harris helped drive a surge of illegal immigration to the United States.
On Friday, Harris and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas visited the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas five months into an illegal immigration surge that is expected to bring 1.2 million border crossers to the nation by the end of 2021.
Though Harris has rebranded the influx of illegal immigration as migration chaos that needs only to be managed, Morgan said in a statement that the Vice President and Mayorkas helped create the problem when they gutted former President Trump’s border controls and strict interior immigration enforcement measures.
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25 Jun 2021
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas used his visit to the United States-Mexico border with Vice President Kamala Harris to tout amnesty for illegal aliens.
On Friday, during a press conference in El Paso, Texas, alongside Harris, Mayorkas said he was “hopeful” that an amnesty for illegal aliens would be approved by Congress.
“I am hopeful that Congress will pass immigration reform to fix a system that everyone recognizes is broke and I am thankful for [Sen. Dick Durbin’s] years-long effort and championing this effort,” Mayorkas said.
Mayorkas also suggested that the role of DHS, under his and President Joe Biden’s direction, is “to build safe and legal pathways for people” to stay in the U.S. indefinitely a stark contrast to former President Trump’s DHS, which sought to stem illegal immigration and drug trafficking.