Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris has an electoral vulnerability regarding her immigration performance as Vice President. The Biden-Harris Administration has not been seen by voters as sufficiently tough on immigration enforcement and border security despite recent efforts to close the border to new refugee claims.
Harris will likely continue to be taunted as the failed “border czar” by Republican candidates, including White House hopefuls Donald Trump and J.D. Vance.
Statement by Jeh Johnson
President Obama’s former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson spoke to Steve Doocy on “Fox & Friends.” He dispelled the belief that Harris is to blame for the crisis at the border, despite the portfolio given to Harris by Biden early in his first term.
Harris’s Role Clarified
Johnson said Harris “assumed Vice President Biden’s role during the Obama Administration, diplomacy with Central America. That is a role he had. He gave it to her. She is not the ‘border czar.'”
Origins of the ‘Border Czar’ Moniker
Johnson said that the moniker “Border Czar” used pejoratively by Harris’s opponents came from Republicans themselves and originated with the Obama Administration when conservatives labeled heads of agencies a “Czar” if Congress did not officially confirm their appointment or if Congress did not establish the agency.
Johnson’s Statement on the ‘Border Czar’
Johnson continued, “To the extent there is anybody who is a border czar, it’s the Secretary of Homeland Security.” Johnson was the Secretary of Homeland Security during Obama’s second term.
Impeachment of Alejandro Mayorkas
In February 2024, the House successfully impeached Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for refusing to enforce the Immigration and Nationality Act’s detention, parole, and removal provisions.
Reasons for Impeachment
The House Homeland Security Committee also stated as a reason for the impeachment that Mayorkas breached the public trust by violating his duty to control the border and making false statements to Congress regarding whether he had operational control of the border as defined by the Secure Fence Act.
Harris’s Involvement in Border Affairs
While Mayorkas may be the “border czar” according to Johnson, if there is one, Harris is undeniably implicated in border affairs as the manager of the Central American Presidential portfolio.
Criticism of Harris
Republicans mocked Harris for not visiting the border, and liberals and immigrant advocates were upset with the “Do not come” message she brought to potential migrants in Mexico and Guatemala.
Harris’s Public Presence
Harris never emerged as the Administration’s voice of authority on the border crisis issues, even as the importance of border security rose as a top issue for voters in the 2024 election. Harris’s voice and presence could be seen in other policy matters, such as abortion rights.
Multifaceted Border Security
Securing the border is multifaceted and has to address the “push” externally from other countries to cause migrants to want to leave bad situations, as well as the “pull” that attracts migrants to come to America specifically.
Republican Attacks on Harris
While Harris could not have single handedly solved the border crisis, Republican attacks on Harris for perceived weak border policies and actions have already begun. They are unlikely to stop in the hundred or so days before the election if Harris is the Democratic nominee.
Harris’s Efforts in Central America
From her Vice Presidential position, Harris was focused on making long-term investments and building relationships to make the Central and South American economies more stable and attractive for migrants to remain in place.
Private-Sector Investment
For example, the Biden-Harris Administration announced in March that they had secured $1 billion in private-sector investment in Central America. Since Biden took office in 2021, over $5 billion in public and private funds have been spent in pursuit of economic growth in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.
Johnson’s Final Remarks
Johnson reiterated that a strong and secure border will only go so far to resolve the ongoing border conflicts. He said, “So long as those overwhelming push factors exist, they will keep coming…and so you do have to address the problem at the source and fix our immigration system here, which is broken.”
