(NewsNation) — Ron Vitiello, the former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under Donald Trump, tells “The Hill on NewsNation” he doesn’t believe Kamala Harris will follow through on tough border reform despite her new ads promising just that.
“I am not convinced that she has changed her mind or changed her stance because they’ve had three years to fix what’s going on at the border,” he said. “They haven’t done it at all.”
NewsNation’s Chris Stirewalt countered: “But even if it was for just political reasons, shouldn’t border hawks welcome a flip-flop in their direction from the vice president? Wouldn’t that be good if the arguments are moving in your direction?”
Vitiello doubled down on his point, claiming that Harris’ perceived failures as “border czar” don’t bode well for a Harris administration that is aggressive against immigration.
Under the Biden administration, migrants crossing into the U.S. from Mexico hit record highs at the end of 2023. But they’ve also seen a sharp drop since President Joe Biden implemented a mandate that limits border crossings.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbot doesn’t believe Biden’s policy is behind the slowed flow of migrants, telling NewsNation that immigration wanes and waxes throughout the year historically.
“That was after Texas began our accelerated operations to deny illegal entry, using the Guard, using the razor wire, using the pepper ball,” he said.
It’s also important to note that, in 2021, Biden tasked Harris with addressing the root causes of immigration, a role that was not called “border czar.” The job of controlling who and how many people can enter the country is Homeland Security’s, according to a PolitiFact.
