Kamala Harris Plans Trip to Guatemala and Mexico — But Not Southern Border

Vice President Kamala Harris revealed Wednesday she would travel to Guatemala and Mexico to address the “root causes” of mass migration to the United States.

She added she had no plans to visit America’s Southern border or any of the overcrowded detention facilities holding child migrants.

Harris made it clear that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was in charge of the border and she was in charge of addressing the economic conditions of countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.

“The president has asked Secretary Mayorkas to address what is going on at the border. …  I have been asked to lead the issue of dealing with root causes in the Northern Triangle,” she said.

Harris hosted her first event on the migrant crisis Wednesday morning, three weeks after President Joe Biden appointed her to lead the administration’s response. She met with a group of activists and advisers on the issue at the White House and spoke to reporters about her goals.

Harris said she wanted to offer “hope” to the countries where migrants were leaving for the United States.

She acknowledged the administration’s work in the region would not fix the problems overnight, but promised to assist the countries with economic development.

Harris met with experts and activists after House Republicans mocked her at a press conference for failing to visit the Southern border.