House Speaker Kevin McCarthy leads GOP delegation to US-Mexico border
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is leading a delegation of Republican lawmakers to the southern border Thursday, in his first visit to the region since the GOP took control of the House in the 2022 midterm elections.
The California Republican, a longtime critic of President Biden’s border policy, went on an aerial tour of the Tucson, Arizona, sector of the US-Mexico border from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
McCarthy is joined by four freshman members of the House: Reps. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.), Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) and Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.).
“Gaps in the wall. Abandoned tech. The Biden Administration stopped our border security progress in its tracks,” McCarthy tweeted Thursday alongside a video of him on the aerial tour. “Why is President Biden denying law enforcement and property owners the use of every possible tool at their disposal to secure the border and end the crisis?”
The Speaker is expected to hold a press conference on the visit Thursday afternoon, where he said he will be accompanied by “ranchers, border patrol, and local leaders who are sick and tired of the cartels exploiting the chaos at our border and getting richer by smuggling people and deadly fentanyl into our country.”
Biden visited the border for the first time since assuming office in January, but on Thursday slammed McCarthy’s visit in a statement to multiple outlets.
“House Republicans should spend less time on partisan publicity stunts and more time working on solutions,” said White House spokesperson Ian Sams. “Solutions are what President Biden is focused on, and his plan is working. House Republicans would be wise to join him to work together to strengthen our immigration system and fund border security.”
The trip comes as border crossings were down 42% between December and January after the controversial Title 42 measure was expanded to include barring citizens of Mexico, Nicaragua, Cuba, Haiti, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Venezuela from entering the US at the southern border to claim asylum. Citizens of those countries are instead expelled to Mexico.
“The January monthly operational update clearly illustrates that new border enforcement measures are working,” Troy Miller of CBP said in a statement.
Still, in rural Terrell County, Texas, there was a 540% increase in the number of illegal migrants arrested for being smuggled over the border — usually by cartels — since 2020, The Post exclusively reported this month.
“The first thing that has to be done is secure the border before we have any immigration reform,” McCarthy said Tuesday, according to Spectrum. “Once we’re able to secure it, I think we’ll move forward with immigration.”
