Trump Blames Democrats, Mexico For Border Crisis
In a tweet posted on Sunday, President Donald Trump blamed Mexico and the Democratic Party for what appears to be a crisis at the southern border. According to the president, the opposition party bears part of the blame for the crisis because it allows “major loopholes” to remain in the American immigration system.
The United States’ southern neighbor, Mexico, is to blame as well for doing “nothing” to prevent undocumented immigrants from crossing the border, according to Trump. The president concluded his tweet with a warning, suggesting that Homeland Security is losing patience.
“The Democrats are allowing a ridiculous asylum system and major loopholes to remain as a mainstay of our immigration system. Mexico is likewise doing NOTHING, a very bad combination for our Country. Homeland Security is being sooo very nice, but not for long!”
These comments come as no surprise given that Donald Trump has campaigned and governed as an immigration hardliner. Trump forced a partial government shutdown — the longest and most expensive in U.S. history — in order to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border in an alleged effort to curb illegal immigration and stop the influx of illicit substances.
Most recently, the president threatened to close the southern border. As previously reported by The Inquisitr, both parties agree that there is indeed a crisis at the border, but Democrats and immigration rights activists blame the Trump administration’s policies for it.
The president blames the opposition party, and Mexico.
These happenings have prompted Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to send a formal letter to Congress. Nielsen requested an increase in border security funding, and broader deportation powers. She also released a statement, suggesting that law enforcement is unable to do its job, and forced to choose between protecting the border and taking care of asylum seekers.
Trump’s threat to shut the U.S. border if Mexico does not halt all illegal immigration has exposed the limitations of the new Mexican government’s strategy of trying to appease the U.S. president as he gears up for re-election https://t.co/EQlqU6l5jJ pic.twitter.com/pdkR6NoDfK
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 31, 2019
A number of Democrats responded to Nielsen’s claims, blaming the Trump administration’s immigration policies for what is happening at the border. House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson, for instance, accused Nielsen of “confusing and misleading” the American public, blaming Trump for “making the difficult situation at the border worse.”
Trump has continually cracked down on virtually all forms of immigration. As The Guardian reported yesterday, the president recently cut off humanitarian aid to Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador, in order to reduce the number of Latin American asylum seekers. The Democrats criticized this decision, arguing that the president’s cutting off aid will actually only increase the number.
Watch: President Trump calls claims from asylum seekers being told by lawyers to say they are fearing for their lives a "big fat con job." https://t.co/Jv5fvkttog pic.twitter.com/e82AsCymbC
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) March 29, 2019
Sending asylum seekers back to Mexico is the administration’s official policy. As many as 300 people are sent back per day, according to officials.
