Harris vows to keep Biden's border crackdown: "The United States is a sovereign nation"
Douglas, Arizona — During a visit to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday, Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to keep President Biden's asylum crackdown in place if elected, solidifying Democrats' embrace of more stringent immigration rules.
Harris used her visit to Douglas, Arizona, to address one of the most pressing political vulnerabilities faced by her presidential campaign: illegal immigration. It's an issue that Americans have grown increasingly worried about in recent years amid record levels of migrant crossings at the southern border, polls show.
Harris promised to increase criminal penalties for repeat border crossers, give the Justice Department more resources to go after transnational gangs and revive a bipartisan border security compromise that would have enacted drastic limits on asylum and boosted the ranks of immigration judges and Border Patrol agents. That deal collapsed earlier this year after former President Donald Trump urged Republican allies in Congress to oppose the measure, which would not have legalized unauthorized immigrants, a longtime Democratic priority.
The sweeping border rules Mr. Biden issued in June, which have virtually shut off access to the U.S. asylum system between legal entry points at the southern border, would remain in place under a Harris administration, she pledged. U.S. officials have credited the measure for a four-year low in unlawful border crossings this summer.
"The United States is a sovereign nation," Harris said. "And I believe we have a duty to set rules at our border and to enforce them."
"Those who cross our borders unlawfully will be apprehended and removed and barred from reentering for five years," Harris added later in her remarks. "We will pursue more severe criminal charges for repeat violators. And if someone does not make an asylum request at a legal point of entry, and instead crosses our border unlawfully, they will be barred from receiving asylum."
Harris' comments marked a dramatic departure from her more liberal immigration positions during the 2020 campaign, when she signaled support for decriminalizing unauthorized border crossings and more lenient asylum policies. They also reinforce a years-long trend of Democrats endorsing tougher policies to deter migration to the U.S.-Mexico border.
The vice president also made combating the flow of fentanyl a focal point of her remarks, calling it a "scourge on our country." Harris proposed deploying additional personnel and fentanyl detection machines to ports of entry along the border, and called on the Chinese government to crack down on companies that make the precursor chemicals utilized in the making of fentanyl.
While much of her speech focused on tougher border measures, Harris did call for a pathway to U.S. citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have been in the U.S. "for years," including the so-called "Dreamers" who were brought to the country as children.
Harris' visit came as the Biden administration prepares to cement the asylum restrictions it issued in June. The policy changes, slated to be announced as early as Monday, would make it far less likely for the partial asylum ban to be lifted in the near future, according to two U.S. officials who requested anonymity to discuss internal government plans.
Harris' first border trip as the Democratic nominee comes as the vice president is looking to make gains on her opponent, Trump, on border issues. According to a recent CBS News poll, 58% of likely voters consider the U.S.-Mexico border a major factor in deciding whom they will vote for. The poll also found 53% of likely voters would support Trump starting a national program to find and deport all immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally.
Trump and Republicans have long campaigned on the need for strong border security and have attempted to place blame on Harris for the influx of illegal crossings during the Biden administration.
During a Thursday press conference in New York, Trump denounced Harris' border visit, telling reporters "she should save her airfare."
"She should go back to the White House and tell the president to close the border," Trump said. "He can do it with the signing of just a signature and a piece of paper to the Border Patrol."