Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley on Friday took aim at Vice President Kamala Harris, saying she cannot be trusted to deal with the border crisis, citing a 2018 comparison that the then senator made between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Ku Klux Klan.
“How can we trust Kamala Harris to deal with the border crisis when she compared ICE to KKK in 2018?” Haley tweeted. “Answer: we can’t.”
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Haley was referring to a contentious confirmation hearing in November 2018, when Harris asked Ronald Vitiello – who was then President Donald Trump’s candidate to lead the ICE – if he was “aware of the perception” of a similarity between the ICE and the KKK.
Harris pointed to a 2015 Vitiello tweet in which he compared the Democratic Party to a “liberal-cratic” or “neo-Klanist” entity – something Vitiello apologized for.
“What is the story that would make those words wrong?” Harris asked, to which Vitiello responded saying that the KKK would be labeled a domestic terrorist group by today’s standards and was motivated by race and ethnicity and tried to use “fear and strength”.
“Are you aware of the perception of many about how the power and discretion of the ICE is being used to enforce the laws and do you see any parallels?” she asked.
Vitiello countered by saying “I see no parallels” between the agency and the KKK and asked if she asked him if they were in the same category.
“No, I’m very specific about what I’m asking. Are you aware that the way they …” Harris continued, before the nominee said, “I don’t see any.”
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But Harris insisted, “Are you aware that there is a perception that the ICE is managing its power in a way that is causing fear and intimidation, especially among immigrants and specifically among immigrants from Mexico and Central America?”
Harris ended his question by asking whether Vitiello can lead the agency if he is not aware of the negative views about it.
“Sir, how can you be the head of an agency and not be aware of how your agency is viewed by certain communities?” she asked.
“There are many perceptions in the media and in the public that are incorrect about the agency and what it does,” replied Vitiello.
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“But the perception exists, do you agree, whether it is correct or not?” she asked. “And wouldn’t you agree, then, that if that perception exists, it might take some work to correct the perception?”
The line of questioning was controversial at the time, with several Republicans condemning the comparison. But it has resurfaced in the past few days since President Biden announced that Harris will serve as the government’s diplomatic liaison in negotiations with Mexico and the Northern Triangle nations of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador on how best to address the causes of the recent increase in numbers. of migrants.
“This new outbreak that we are dealing with now started with the last government, but it is our responsibility to deal with it in a humane way and to prevent what is happening,” said Biden. “This increase was consequential, but the vice president agreed – among the many other things that I have led and I thank her for – she agreed to lead our diplomatic effort and work with these nations to accept returnees and improve the surveillance of migration across their borders. . “
On Wednesday, Republican National Committee chairman Ronna McDaniel tweeted: “Kamala Harris compared the ICE to the KKK. She called for the decriminalization of illegal border crossings and the granting of free medical care to illegal immigrants.”
“Now Joe Biden says” does she speak for me “in the border crisis?” she said. “This should concern all Americans.”
Republicans have increased pressure on the Biden government in recent weeks because of the increase in the number of migrants and describing it as a crisis – something the Biden government has denied, although it described the figures from the north as “overwhelming”.
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Haley was one of those critical voices. Earlier this week, she contrasted the Trump administration’s approach, under which she served as a UN ambassador, with Biden’s approach.
“We need to deal with the immigration problem before it even reaches our border. President Trump understood this and worked with Mexico and the Central American countries to ensure that this happened, ”she said. “Biden’s policies are just encouraging migrants to come in endless crowds.”
Thomas Barrabi of Fox News contributed to this report.