EL TIPO DE CAMBIO DE HOY ES DE: Kamala Harris is now considered by many to be a crucial factor in the U.S. border administration, but the reality reflects otherwise.
Overview. While Harris is expected to receive the official nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate, her opponents have been highlighting her weaknesses associated with the vice presidency she holds. Among them, migration has been the focal point for Republicans. According to her opponents, Kamala Harris was considered the border czar of the U.S. government.
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However, the Biden Administration is noted for recording the highest number of migrant encounters in the country's history.
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Since the president took office, until now, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection department has recorded more than 10 million encounters on its southern border.
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Given the failure of the Democratic administration's policy on this matter, it is not surprising that Harris' campaign now seeks to distance itself from it.
Between the lines. In 2021, President Biden tasked his vice president with working in the “Northern Triangle” to address the root causes of migration. The Democrats came to power at the height of the post-pandemic period, when the trend of immigration to the U.S. began to rise. Harris' work in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador was crucial to stemming the influx of migrants entering the U.S. southern border. At least, that was the administration's focus.
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In a meeting with members of the Congressional Black Caucus in April 2021, the president commented that she would do a "hell of a job" with immigration.
Voices. In a statement on the social network X, Guatemalan billionaire Luis von Ahn declared, “I am from Guatemala, a country responsible for a large part of illegal immigration to the U.S. Kamala Harris has helped strengthen the rule of law and the economy in my country, which has led to fewer people wanting to emigrate. I am confident she is the best choice to solve the U.S. border crisis.”
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A year earlier, he issued a statement expressing his "deep concern about threats to democracy and the constitutional order" due to actions by the Public Ministry (MP) in the context of the Guatemalan presidential elections.
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"What has to happen for Consuelo Porras (MP's attorney general) to resign or be dismissed?" he expressed on his X account on September 20, 2021.
In perspective. Von Ahn's statements contradict his opinion about the rule of law in his country. However, the claims about Harris' work on migration do not reflect reality either. While the number of encounters with Guatemalan migrants has decreased over the years—284,291 in 2021; 233,061 in 2022; and 221,849 in 2023—little is attributable to the vicepresident's work.
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The first year of Biden's administration saw the biggest surge in the migratory trend in Guatemala, according to the “Survey on International Migration of Guatemalan People and Remittances 2022” by USAID and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
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The IOM points out that the decrease in encounters with Guatemalans in the U.S. is due to the increase in detentions in Mexico, not necessarily a reduction in migratory flows from Guatemala.
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But, mainly, the drop in the number of Guatemalan migrants is due to the end of the pandemic, the main cause of the migrant surge when the borders of the Northern Triangle countries were reopened.
In conclusion. Kamala Harris has done nothing for the U.S. migration crisis. Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns write in their book about the early days of Biden's presidency: “She (Kamala Harris) would take on the Northern Triangle, traveling to Central America and negotiating with governments there, but under no circumstances did she want to be branded Biden’s border ‘czar’”.
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From a preventive standpoint, however, it is also unclear whether the vice president can be held responsible for the recent reduction in immigration from the Northern Triangle.
Kamala Harris is now considered by many to be a crucial factor in the U.S. border administration, but the reality reflects otherwise.
Overview. While Harris is expected to receive the official nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate, her opponents have been highlighting her weaknesses associated with the vice presidency she holds. Among them, migration has been the focal point for Republicans. According to her opponents, Kamala Harris was considered the border czar of the U.S. government.
-
However, the Biden Administration is noted for recording the highest number of migrant encounters in the country's history.
SUSCRÍBASE A NUESTRO NEWSLETTER DE POLÍTICA -
Since the president took office, until now, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection department has recorded more than 10 million encounters on its southern border.
-
Given the failure of the Democratic administration's policy on this matter, it is not surprising that Harris' campaign now seeks to distance itself from it.
Between the lines. In 2021, President Biden tasked his vice president with working in the “Northern Triangle” to address the root causes of migration. The Democrats came to power at the height of the post-pandemic period, when the trend of immigration to the U.S. began to rise. Harris' work in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador was crucial to stemming the influx of migrants entering the U.S. southern border. At least, that was the administration's focus.
-
In a meeting with members of the Congressional Black Caucus in April 2021, the president commented that she would do a "hell of a job" with immigration.
Voices. In a statement on the social network X, Guatemalan billionaire Luis von Ahn declared, “I am from Guatemala, a country responsible for a large part of illegal immigration to the U.S. Kamala Harris has helped strengthen the rule of law and the economy in my country, which has led to fewer people wanting to emigrate. I am confident she is the best choice to solve the U.S. border crisis.”
-
A year earlier, he issued a statement expressing his "deep concern about threats to democracy and the constitutional order" due to actions by the Public Ministry (MP) in the context of the Guatemalan presidential elections.
-
"What has to happen for Consuelo Porras (MP's attorney general) to resign or be dismissed?" he expressed on his X account on September 20, 2021.
In perspective. Von Ahn's statements contradict his opinion about the rule of law in his country. However, the claims about Harris' work on migration do not reflect reality either. While the number of encounters with Guatemalan migrants has decreased over the years—284,291 in 2021; 233,061 in 2022; and 221,849 in 2023—little is attributable to the vicepresident's work.
-
The first year of Biden's administration saw the biggest surge in the migratory trend in Guatemala, according to the “Survey on International Migration of Guatemalan People and Remittances 2022” by USAID and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
-
The IOM points out that the decrease in encounters with Guatemalans in the U.S. is due to the increase in detentions in Mexico, not necessarily a reduction in migratory flows from Guatemala.
-
But, mainly, the drop in the number of Guatemalan migrants is due to the end of the pandemic, the main cause of the migrant surge when the borders of the Northern Triangle countries were reopened.
In conclusion. Kamala Harris has done nothing for the U.S. migration crisis. Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns write in their book about the early days of Biden's presidency: “She (Kamala Harris) would take on the Northern Triangle, traveling to Central America and negotiating with governments there, but under no circumstances did she want to be branded Biden’s border ‘czar’”.
-
From a preventive standpoint, however, it is also unclear whether the vice president can be held responsible for the recent reduction in immigration from the Northern Triangle.
