Nikki Haley to visit southern border as she rolls out immigration agenda
Ryan King
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Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley will embark on a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas on April 3 as she rolls out her plans to tackle the border crisis.
Haley will be joined by Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) on the trip and will make stops near San Antonio and Eagle Pass, which have been home to some of the largest migrant activity of the crisis. The trip marks the first border visit by an active 2024 contender this year, according to her campaign.
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“Securing the border is the first and most important step toward ending this crisis. Yet the one person who can do the most to help is actively making things so much worse. President Joe Biden has spent two-plus years in office ignoring the border and undermining proven efforts to stop the flow of drugs and illegal immigrants,” Haley wrote in a recent op-ed for the National Review.
Biden made his first visit down to the southern border since ascending to the presidency earlier this year. Last fiscal year saw over 2.3 million encounters at the southern border, a new record that surpassed the 1.7 million encounters identified in fiscal 2021, according to Customs and Border Protection.
Haley discussed her plan to address the border situation Monday during a New Hampshire town hall. Her plan includes mandating E-Verify for business hiring, expanding the Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement workforces, and putting an end to government “handouts” for illegal immigrants.
Additionally, Haley has backed the so-called “Remain in Mexico” policy in which asylum-seekers stay in Mexico while court proceedings play out. She also supports the pandemic-era Title 42 policy, which permits border officials immediately to turn away people who crossed the border illegally, even asylum-seekers.
Republicans have long lashed out at Biden over the festering border crisis, and he has seemingly lurched a tad to the center in response, drawing unease from some liberals.
The Biden administration is contemplating reestablishing a policy of detaining families who illegally breach the border, the Washington Post reported. Biden has also accused the Freedom Caucus of seeking to cut border security funding.
“While securing the border is the first step to ending the fentanyl crisis, the first step to securing the border is ending Joe Biden’s presidency. I will do that, too, so our families are finally safe from the scourge of fentanyl. The good people of New Hampshire are counting on it. So is every American,” Haley added in her op-ed.
Other 2024 hopefuls and speculated aspirants have made immigration a core tenet of their platforms. Former President Donald Trump, the GOP front-runner, has teased that he will implement one of the largest deportations schemes in United States history if he clinches a second term.
Meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has unveiled a suite of proposals to counter what he dubs “Biden’s border crisis.”
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Haley is running in fourth place among the hypothetical 2024 candidates, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling aggregate.
During her campaign, she has kept up a busy travel itinerary, traversing Iowa, New Hampshire, and other states.