President Biden to Visit Southern Border

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - The President will visit a major hotspot for border crossings on Thursday. The White House says Biden’s trip — his second to the U.S.-Mexico border — aims to reduce the flow of migrants who have poured into the U.S. at record levels since he took office.

Recent polling shows border security is a top issue for most voters. That fact has not gone unnoticed by President Biden or former President Donald Trump, both of whom are making trips to the southern border.

Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary, outlined Biden’s agenda.

“He’s going to meet with U.S. Border Patrol agents, law enforcement, and local leaders, and he’s going to discuss the urgent need to pass the bipartisan proposal that came out of the Senate.” She went on, “And we believe that if this proposal — this legislation were to become law, it would be, yes, the toughest but also the fairest.”

Due to pressure from his fellow House Republicans and Trump, that measure has not yet been taken up by Speaker Mike Johnson, who decides whether any legislation is put to a vote on the House floor.

“Because of the former President, Republicans decided to reject a bipartisan agreement that was supported by the Border Patrol union, that was supported by U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which you don’t see very often in this current political climate,” said Jean-Pierre.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said new legislation isn’t necessary.

“The fact of the matter is there are laws on the books passed by Congress of the United States right now that authorize the executive branch to deny illegal entry.” Abbot went on, “The President does not need new laws. The President needs a backbone to make sure that he enforces the immigration laws that are already on the book.”

During his trip to Brownsville, TX, the President will not announce any executive actions to discourage migrants from coming to the United States. Meanwhile, Trump — on his day trip to Eagle Pass, Texas about 325 miles away — will call attention to what his campaign calls the “worst immigration crisis in history.”

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