Despite an invitation from Texas Gov. Rick Perry, President Obama still has no immediate plans to visit the southwest border amid a crisis-level influx of illegal immigrant children and family units.
White House Press Sec. Josh Earnest said Wednesday that, to date, Obama does not have plans to visit the border.
“That’s the continued plan,” Earnest said when asked if Obama still has no plans to go to the border.
He did, however, leave the door open for a change in scheduling.
“[S]chedules sometimes change, and if they do we’ll let you know. But right now there is no plan to visit the border while he’s in Texas,” the new press secretary said.
Obama is scheduled to be in Texas for DNC fundraisers July 9 and 10, according to The Monitor.
Wednesday morning, Perry called on Obama to visit the southwest border during an appearance on Fox and Friends.
“[I]f the president of the United States is really serious about securing that border, we can show him how to do that,” the Texas governor said. “But I haven’t even had a phone call from this president. He’s coming next week. He’s coming for a fundraiser. If he doesn’t go to the border, I think it’s a real reflection of his lack of concern of what’s really going on there.”
Earnest added that, while Obama has no current plans to visit the border, that could change as late as the day of the trip.
“I think the last thing I would say is that those individuals who are concerned about border security and concerned about the situation at the border, that the most important thing they could do is not offer public invitations but actually lend their public support to comprehensive immigration reform,” Earnest said.