Many Republican critics of President Joe Biden’s lax immigration policies are less than enthusiastic about his recently announced plan to visit the U.S.-Mexico border more than two years into his term.
Now Biden says his “intent” is to visit the border next week.
Too little, too late. But at least he’d get to see the crisis he created.
— Rep. Darrell Issa (@repdarrellissa) January 4, 2023
Multiple GOP lawmakers reacted to the news by highlighting the record number of illegal border crossings reported thus far during the Biden administration.
As Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) tweeted: “No other country in the world would accept the surge of illegal immigration the Biden Administration has effectively invited.”
Although Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said that he was “pleased” to hear reports about Biden’s forthcoming visit, he noted that the border “has been completely surrendered to the cartels, smugglers, and human traffickers” over the past two years.
Another reason for Republican skepticism lies in the fact that reports of Biden’s border visit came just before he announced new immigration policies that would make it easier for thousands of migrants from a handful of countries to enter the nation each month.
While his speech on the matter paid lip service to the need for increased border security, critics have denounced the provision for immigrants from Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, and Haiti as de facto amnesty.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott decried Biden’s proposal as a “Band-Aid for a historic flood.”
The president went on to echo previous White House statements that seek to blame Republicans for the border crisis, asserting: “Until Congress passes the funds, a comprehensive immigration plan to fix the system completely, my administration is going to work to make things at the border better using the tools that we have.”
Biden also accused “extreme Republicans” for using the issue as partisan fodder, insisting that “they can keep using immigration to try to score political points or they can help solve the problem and come together to fix the broken system.”
Of course, the president also has critics within the far-left wing of his own party, including Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), who thinks the plan does not go far enough in permitting the immigrant invasion to continue.
“While I’m glad the Biden administration will be increasing access to parole for an extremely limited number of Cubans, Nicaraguans, Venezuelans, and Haitians, this benefit will exclude migrants fleeing violence and persecution,” Menedez said.
