In a recent televised interview on CNN, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — who is outspoken in favor of Democratic causes — went after Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on the border, arguing that the latter has done little beyond foster further turmoil.
“But most importantly, especially after everything our country has been through in recent years, she has made clear where she stands on the legislation that’s actually in front of us, which is that bipartisan border deal,” Buttigieg said, referring to Vice President Kamala Harris, the current Democratic pick for this year’s presidential election.
“And again, this is up against Donald Trump, who has no interest in solving the problem. After all, he didn’t, right? One of many things that he promised and failed to do, was he ran for president promising to fix all our problems at the border, and make sure immigration was sorted out forever in this country. Of course, nothing of the sort happened. Because again, unfortunately, the worse that problem gets for America, the better it is for Donald Trump.”
The border policy deal that Buttigieg referenced was proposed in the Senate but tanked by Republicans, though its ambitions were sweeping, even including new powers for the federal government to largely close the southern border in periods of particular strain there.
But what Buttigieg was arguing was that turmoil at the southern border and in the immigration system essentially benefits Trump’s political ambitions this year. As he continues in his latest run for the White House, Trump keeps pointing to supposed problems in those areas at a fever pitch well exemplified by much of the GOP’s insistence on falsely describing recent influxes of undocumented immigrants at the southern border as an “invasion” of the United States. Trump argues more broadly that the U.S. is “failing,” pointing — perhaps most consistently — to immigration.
