Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, Pete Buttigieg defended the actions taken by the Biden-Harris administration regarding illegal immigration during a spirited exchange with Shannon Bream of Fox News on Sunday.
Buttigieg participated in the discussion in his personal capacity as a special guest on “Fox News Sunday,” where he sought to mitigate criticisms aimed at Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris, along with other Democrats, has been working to reframe her 2021 mission focused on border challenges, which at the time led to her being widely referred to as the “border czar.”
“It’s important to clarify this because there’s been a lot of misunderstanding. She was not responsible for border management. The responsibility lies with the Department of Homeland Security. However, she undertook a significant role by engaging in diplomatic relations with Central American nations, recognizing that this is part of the broader context affecting border situations. Interestingly, those Central American countries are among the few that have seen a decrease in the number of migrants appearing at the border,” Buttigieg stated.
“Not by much,” Bream retorted.
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Former Mayor Pete Buttigieg defended the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of illegal immigration in a heated back-and-forth with Fox News’ Shannon Bream on Sunday. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Buttigieg further asserted that President Biden faced obstacles in passing comprehensive immigration reform due to interventions from former President Trump.
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“[Biden] hoped Congress would resolve [immigration issues] as that would have been a more lasting solution. However, Trump deterred Republicans from their own bipartisan efforts, as he profited politically from the chaos at the border. Remember, the more chaotic the border situation, the more advantageous it is for Trump,” Buttigieg remarked.
Vice President Harris and migrants at the southern border. (Getty Images)
Bream, however, contested this narrative, pointing out that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other Republican lawmakers had raised objections regarding provisions that Democrats included in the border legislation.
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“Let’s get real. The primary reason they didn’t proceed was due to Trump’s intervention,” Buttigieg maintained. “He intervened to prevent Biden from achieving a legislative victory.”
“Many of them believed it was a flawed piece of legislation, filled with too many loopholes and elements they couldn’t support,” Bream replied.
Migrants walk along the highway through Suchiate, Chiapas state in southern Mexico, Sunday, July 21, 2024, during their journey north toward the U.S. border. (AP Photo/Edgar H. Clemente)
Buttigieg is among various prominent Democrats who have come to Harris’s defense regarding her immigration policies as she swiftly rises as the likely Democratic nominee for 2024.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., accused Republicans of fabricating the term “border czar.” His remarks came just prior to six members of his House Democratic Caucus voting to express disapproval of Harris’s management of the migrant situation.
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“There’s one legislative item currently on the floor… it’s a baseless and deceptive resolution concocted, I believe, by a representative from New York – who continues to embarrass herself regularly – that misrepresents the vice president’s role,” Jeffries informed reporters during his weekly press briefing.
“She was never officially designated as the border czar. This narrative is entirely fabricated because the extreme MAGA Republicans are in a full state of panic,” he concluded.
