White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre insisted on Thursday that President Biden is doing “everything” he can to combat the surge of migrants at the southern border and she accused Republicans of not doing enough.
“We have taken steps without the help of Republicans in Congress to do everything that we can to deal with this issue,” Jean-Pierre told reporters at the White House.
“And let’s not forget what the Republicans propose, their continuing resolution, lead [to] 800 [Customs and Border Protection] agents and officers being fired.”
Jean-Pierre then criticized the GOP’s decision to block a procedural vote on a defense spending bill.
“That is what they proposed just a day ago, and that’s what that would do to the border. It would hurt and harm and not deal with the issue,” she said.
“So they’re doing the opposite of what the president is trying to do, which is actually move forward in a way that is humane, safe and has an orderly enforcement pathway process here.”
However, House Republicans supporting the stopgap continuing resolution to keep the government open through Oct. 31 say it will actually ramp up border security, including by funding continuing construction of a border wall and authorizing the hiring of 22,000 more CBP agents.
When asked about a shocking report that 10,000 migrants crossed the southern border on Wednesday alone, Jean-Pierre refused to answer and attempted to blame Republicans in Congress before moving on.
“So, what do you call it here at the White House when 10,000 people illegally cross the border in a single day?” Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked the White House spokeswoman.
“So what do you call it, Peter, when [the] GOP puts forth a … wait, no, no, no, no, no, you can’t,” Jean-Pierre said, talking over Doocy as he attempted to redirect Jean-Pierre back to his question.
“You’re answering my question with a question,” Doocy noted.
“OK, we’re going to move on,” Jean-Pierre said, shutting the reporter down.
Conservatives fumed at the White House’s response to border security questions, accusing the president and Jean-Pierre of refusing to take accountability and not caring about the issue.
“This is the Biden White House playbook: Refuse to take accountability for the problems YOU created and when someone challenges you, ignore them. Clown show. The border will only get worse under this administration,” Colin Rugg, a conservative commentator, said in a tweet.
“Joe Biden doesn’t seem to care. Karine Jean-Pierre doesn’t seem to care. And I know [Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas] doesn’t care because we’ve asked him tons of questions, asked for information and data that he refuses to get to us,” Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said in an interview with Fox News after Jean-Pierre’s briefing.
“So this is the state of this administration. And it’s frankly why I think the approval ratings of Joe Biden are so darn low, because they see what a pathetic job this administration has done.”
Jordan added that the effects of the border crisis are being seen in “every town, every city, every community” because “ the volume, the number” of migrants entering the US “is so darn high.”
“Finally! KJP is correct!” former Arkansas Republican Gov. Mike Huckabee said in a mocking tweet. “Biden has taken historic action. He screwed up the entire immigration process by ignoring the law & common sense & single-handedly made a complete mess of our borders. Don’t forget the ‘border czar’ Kamala Harris and her ‘historic’ action.”
The Biden administration announced Wednesday that up to 800 additional US military members will be sent to the southern border, but that they won’t engage directly with the new arrivals.
The active-duty personnel will focus on “logistics and other functions at the border to allow more Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents and officers to return to their core mission and responsibilities,” the Department of Homeland Security said.