Border experts say the president is trying to appease Democratic governors and mayors by restarting wall construction.
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden is facing significant backlash from Democratic elected leaders, particularly in northern U.S. cities that are struggling to deal with migrant surges. They accuse the president of not doing enough to curb the influx of illegal immigrants, which is putting enormous strain on their resources.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is the latest Democratic politician to voice strong criticism of the federal response to the crisis. In a letter to President Joe Biden on Monday, Mr. Pritzker said that his state was in an “untenable situation” and urged the president to take “swift action.”
In August, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and business leaders asked President Biden to address the “humanitarian crisis” that has overwhelmed New York City following an influx of over 100,000 illegal immigrants from the southern border.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey issued a state of emergency in August in response to the state’s illegal immigrant crisis. In a letter (pdf) to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, she stated that her state has taken action “to address what sadly has been a federal crisis of inaction.”
Officials at the White House are scrambling to respond to these critiques with statements that appear to indicate the administration is making a U-turn on its border policies. Some claim that the recent measures by President Biden are increasingly looking like the policies of the Trump administration.
Before taking the oval office in 2020, President Biden declared, “There will not be another foot of wall constructed in my administration.”
However, the Biden administration announced this week that it will waive dozens of federal regulations to expedite the construction of a southern border wall in Starr County, Texas, in response to the rapidly growing influx of immigrants.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre attempted to defend the move, arguing that the government is following Trump-era laws but still does not believe in the wall’s effectiveness.
By Emel Akan
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