White House adviser Keisha Lance Bottoms on Sunday cited the disruptiveness caused by presidential travel as a reason why President Biden hasn’t been to the southern border, a criticism levied by Republicans amid a crisis that has seen a record number of migrants crossing into the U.S.
“Well, you have to remember… when the President travels it is not like you or I jumping on an airplane and getting off and going to our destination. Everything comes to a halt. So all of these things are in consideration for the President — is that the best use of resources, all of the resources that will be diverted on the ground when the President makes a visit,” Bottoms told CBS’ Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation.”
Her comments come as the Title 42 immigration policy implemented during the Trump administration over public health concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic is set to expire on Wednesday, sparking new concern about a crisis at the border.
The border city of El Paso, Texas, has declared a state of emergency as it deals with an influx of asylum seekers just days before Title 42’s expected end.
Bottoms clarified that she couldn’t speak specifically to why the president hasn’t made a visit to the border, but said that “it’s a bit more disruptive for the President of the United States to travel” than for other Americans.
The White House adviser underscored that Biden is working on the matter from the Oval Office.
“It’s something that he ran on, and what we know over the past two years, every single thing that the president has run on, he’s put time and resources into addressing that. So immigration, we know, is a problem that he did not create. Our issues with immigration are decades long issues, and he will continue to lean the end through the White House and through Congress to get comprehensive immigration reform done,” Bottoms said.
