Fmr. Obama ICE Director: Harris Has ‘Difficult’ Issue on Why Acting on Border Took So Long

On Friday’s broadcast of “NewsNation Now,” John Sandweg, who served as acting ICE Director under President Obama, stated that while 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris can take credit for declining border encounters, “it is a difficult question for the Vice President to answer, why did they wait so long?”

Sandweg said, “I think those numbers at the border are definitely a cause for celebration in the Harris campaign and something they deserve to take credit for. But, you’re right, I think poll after poll shows that America has more confidence on immigration and border issues in Trump. And I think that’s a byproduct of the fact that, although we’re now seeing significant progress, it did take some time for the — why did we wait so long on the new asylum rule? Look, I will say this, though, Connell, that those numbers at the border are a byproduct of a number of factors, including really stepped up enforcement efforts in Mexico, preventing people from getting to our border in the first place. A lot of that is a byproduct of years of work of the Biden-Harris administration to try to get Mexico to do a better job of enforcing its laws and preventing people from getting to our country in the first place. So, listen, it doesn’t diminish, though, the fact that it is a difficult question for the Vice President to answer, why did they wait so long?”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett