President Biden said on Sunday that he plans to travel to the southern border “at some point”, telling reporters that he is in no hurry to visit it because “I know what is happening at these facilities”.
Biden’s immigration agenda includes a path to citizenship for 11 million undocumented migrants, but the president last week called on migrants planning to embark on the United States to postpone for now.
BIDEN SAYS MIGRANTS ‘DON’T COME FOR US’
Asked on Sunday why his warning did little to curb border chaos, Biden admitted that his government could step up efforts to convey its recent messages to migrants heading to the United States.
The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities have operated far beyond capacity amid a worrying increase in people crossing the border. The agency announced that it found more than 100,000 migrants at the border in February, while the number of migrant children in custody has also increased dramatically.
The Biden administration has moved to increase the facility’s capacity to house migrants and build a number of extra facilities – including observing NASA sites and military bases.
Republicans blamed Biden for the increase after he lifted a series of Trump-era immigration restrictions that he considered inhumane, including the end of the “Stay in Mexico” policy and the reinstatement of “fish and release”.
Former President Donald Trump issued a statement in response to Biden’s comments on Sunday, blaming his successor for turning “a national triumph into a national disaster” in dealing with the crisis.
“We proudly handed over to the Biden government the safest border in history,” says the statement. “All they needed to do was keep this system running smoothly on autopilot. Instead, within just a few weeks, the Biden government turned a national triumph into a national disaster. Fast water.”
Trump took aim at the “pathetic and clueless performance” of Department of Homeland Security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, writing that “Even someone with the limited skills of the Mayorkas must understand that if you provide capture and release to the world’s illegal immigrants, then whole world will come. “
“It is clear that they are involved in a big cover-up to hide how bad things really are,” the statement continues. “The only way to end the Biden border crisis is to admit its total failure and adopt the proven and deeply effective Trump policies.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPLICATION
Trump urged Biden to “finish the wall immediately, which can be done in a matter of weeks.
“They should never have stopped it,” he said. “They are causing death and human tragedy.”