Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has bucked his party and President Joe Biden over the mounting crisis at the Southern Border, warning that “we need the wall and a lot more.”
Speaking during an interview with Fox News anchor Bret Baier, Manchin said that the United States needs to finish the border wall started by President Donald Trump in order to tackle the illegal immigration crisis.
Baier asked Manchin about Vice President Kamala Harris recently claiming that the border is “secure.”
“It’s wrong,” Manchin fired back.
“She’s dead wrong on that. And I have said this,” he continued.
“If we don’t secure it — I voted every time for the wall.
“But we need the wall and a lot more — technology, more agents.
“The 2013 immigration bill was still the best piece of legislation I think that we have ever had before us.
“We couldn’t get it passed through the Republican House at that time because of some politics involved there.”
“And they — the amnesty, people were shouting the word amnesty,” he noted.
“That piece of legislation would have corrected everything we have going wrong.
“But, for anybody — the vice president, president, anybody — to say our borders are secured, that is not accurate.
“I have been there. It’s wrong.”
WATCH:
.@BretBaier: "Vice President Harris said this weekend the southern border is 'secure.'"
Manchin: "It's wrong. She's dead wrong on that." pic.twitter.com/O2IIJsNu0E
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 13, 2022
In a recent letter addressed to Biden, the Arizona Sheriff’s Association slammed the administration for its attitude regarding illegal immigration and expressed its lack of confidence in CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus.
The letter cited the fact that curbing the number of illegal immigrants and illicit drugs crossing the border had been a priority for law enforcement for decades.
“Unfortunately, the current administration and Commissioner Magnus do not appear to share the priority and the effects are being felt in Arizona and across the country,” the letter charged.
Turning to the drug problem exacerbated by the porous nature of current border enforcement, the letter stated, “Massive amounts of highly lethal drugs are being moved across the border and peddled to our children.
“Fentanyl is a near-ubiquitous ingredient in illegal drugs being distributed today and is causing the deaths of countless individuals and destroying families at a rapid pace.”
After noting that violent crime is rising throughout the country, the letter segued to Magnus and the Biden administration.
“Since Commissioner Magnus was appointed nearly nine months ago, we have continued to see an influx of illegal immigrants and illicit drugs cross our Southern border,” the letter notes.
“What we have not seen is an increased partnership from the federal government including CBP to assist local law enforcement in preventing this activity.”
“Border security is one of the core missions of the CBP and we feel that the effort being put towards addressing this mission is woefully inadequate,” the letter stated.
