Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Douglas, Arizona, on Friday, her first trip to the U.S.-Mexico border since becoming the Democratic presidential candidate. Harris plans to deliver a speech calling for stronger border security measures in an effort to address border issues, according to a senior campaign official.
Harris plans to emphasize the need for more resources for Border Patrol agents, saying America’s sovereignty requires it to set the rules at the border and enforce them.
The Vice President will focus his remarks on combating the flow of fentanyl, calling it a “top priority” of his presidency. Harris proposes adding fentanyl detection machines at ports of entry along the border and will ask the Chinese government to crack down on companies that make the precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl.
While Harris will emphasize the need for border security and address current resource shortages, the vice president will advocate for a “safe, orderly and humane” immigration system, according to a campaign official granted anonymity to speak freely in prepared remarks. It will.
With Harris expected to file a lawsuit at the border, The Biden administration plans to soon tighten asylum restrictions. Officials told CBS News it was enacted at the southern border over the summer. The planned revised declaration will make it less likely that asylum restrictions will be lifted in the near future, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal government plans. The authorities assessed that strict measures had been taken. a sharp decline There have been illegal border crossings in recent months.
Harris’ first border visit as a Democratic candidate comes as the vice president seeks to give her opponent, former President Donald Trump, an advantage on the border issue. A recent CBS News poll found that 58% of voters consider the U.S.-Mexico border a major factor in deciding who to vote for. The poll found that 53% of voters would support President Trump starting a national program to identify and deport all immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally.
Trump and Republican lawmakers have long argued for the need for strong border security and have attempted to place blame on Harris for the influx of illegal crossings during the Biden administration.
At a news conference in New York on Thursday, President Trump criticized Harris’ border visit, telling reporters, “We need to save on airfare.”
“She should go back to the White House and tell the president to close the borders,” Trump said. “All he has to do is sign his name and a piece of paper to the Border Patrol agent.”
According to a senior campaign official, Harris will argue that Trump is responsible for the incident. Repeal bipartisan border bill It would have enacted permanent asylum restrictions and authorized additional border agents and resources. President Trump earlier this year urged his allies in Congress to reject the bill.
“Americans deserve a president who cares more about border security than political games,” Harris plans to say, according to excerpts previously reported by CBS News.
Harris has urged Congress to pass the bill on the campaign trail, but President Trump called the bill “horrible” on Thursday.
“It will allow people to come in here and gain citizenship at an incredibly high standard,” Trump told reporters. “It wasn’t a border bill. It was an amnesty bill.”
The bill, which failed to get enough support from Senate Republicans last spring, also includes executive authority to reject immigrants during a surge in illegal immigration and would expand levels of legal immigration.
Camilo Montoya-Galvez contributed to this report.
