The trip came a few days before former President Donald Trump is set to visit the border with Texas Gov. The Biden administration has sought to shift blame for the border conditions to the previous administration, arguing it left a broken immigration system, with efforts at addressing the root causes of migration neglected in favor of an enforcement-only approach. The Trump administration had run a pilot program in El Paso of arresting parents for illegally crossing the border and moving their children, including babies, into the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services. Harris - doing some finger-pointing of her own - said that El Paso had been where the Trump administration had unveiled its family separation policy. John Cornyn of Texas and other critics have questioned why Harris would choose El Paso rather than the Rio Grande Valley, where many more of the recent border apprehensions have taken place. Politics Harris Wanted To Talk About Migration But Instead Got Pushed About A Border Visit programs aimed at giving people in Central America hope that "if they stay, help is on the way." But they are also less politically charged than border enforcement and the challenge of dealing with families and unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in the United States.Įarlier this month, Harris visited Guatemala and Mexico to talk about those root causes and highlight U.S. The root causes of migration are long-standing and seemingly intractable, including poverty, violence, natural disasters, climate change and corruption. "Our approach has to be thoughtful and effective." We're talking about suffering," Harris said. "This issue cannot be reduced to a political issue. She said the meeting underscored the importance of looking at why people are fleeing their homes - and urged an end to "rhetoric and finger-pointing" over the issue. "They were asking me questions, 'How do you become the first woman vice president?' " she said, describing the girls as being hopeful and optimistic. Customs and Border Protection processing facility, where she met with staff and five migrant girls ages 9 to 16. Politics Advocates Say Biden Administration Is Violating Pact On Detaining Migrant Children It was always the plan to come here," she told reporters upon landing in El Paso. Harris had been to the border as a senator, but the Biden administration had intentionally avoided having the vice president visit the border until now. Although the White House was careful to emphasize that her role was meant to be a diplomatic one, working with Central American countries driving the arrivals, critics immediately asked why the "border czar" was avoiding the border. In March, President Biden tasked Harris with addressing the root causes of the migration crisis, a role he had when he was vice president during an earlier spike in border crossings. Harris is in charge of the thorny issue of migration from Central America at a time when the Biden administration has struggled to keep up with a surge in migrants. Vice President Harris visited the U.S.-Mexico border Friday in El Paso, Texas, after weeks of badgering by Republicans and at the urging of some Democrats, and she called for an end to the political "finger-pointing" over who's to blame for record numbers of people seeking asylum at the southern border. Harris has been under pressure from Republicans to visit the southern border to see conditions there. Customs and Border Protection facility Friday in El Paso, Texas, with Rep.
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