VP Harris to make long-awaited trip to Arizona-Mexico border
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Vice President Kamala Hattis will visit the Arizona-Mexico border today. Photo: Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images
Vice President Kamala Harris will make a campaign visit to Douglas on Friday. It's her first trip to the U.S.-Mexico border since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee — and many Republicans say it's overdue.
Why it matters: Harris has faced relentless attacks from former President Trump and Republicans who claim she's ill-equipped to handle what they've called a crisis at the southern border.
Driving the news: Harris will cover border security, according to a campaign aide speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss Friday's trip that's still being planned.
- In particular, Harris will share how she is proposing to send new agents to the border and plans to implement new technology to target the flow of fentanyl, the aide said.
- Harris has cast herself as a former "border state prosecutor," leaning into a more hawkish stance while still pushing for a path to citizenship.
The other side: Speaking at a North Carolina rally this week, Trump said Harris was traveling to the border for "political reasons."
- Even before Harris was the presidential nominee, Arizona Republicans criticized her for not visiting the border, despite President Biden tasking her with addressing the root causes of Central American migration to the U.S.
Between the lines: Immigration is perhaps Harris' largest liability among undecided Arizona voters — who could swing the presidential election.
- Harris' campaign has steered away from some more liberal policies she ran on in her prior presidential bid.
- Instead, she has doubled down on tough-on-the-border rhetoric — sparking concern among progressive groups and immigration advocates.
- In an NBC News poll published earlier this month, voters overwhelmingly said they thought Trump would be better at securing the border than Harris.
Flashback: Several prominent Arizona Democrats — and Harris supporters— have criticized the Biden-Harris administration's handling of the southern border.
- Arizona U.S. Senate hopeful U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego said the Biden-Harris administration has failed to do enough to address border security during a live interview with Axios at the Democratic National Convention last month.
Yes, but: Harris and local Democrats have tried to shift the blame back onto Trump, who earlier this year encouraged Senate Republicans to reject a bipartisan border security deal that would have increased Border Patrol staffing, sped up the asylum process and more.
What we're watching: U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes will join Harris at the border, according to The Arizona Republic.