Fox News’ Martha MacCallum told White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby that President Joe Biden is failing in regards to the U.S.-Mexico border crisis.
MacCallum said although Biden gave a speech to the United Nations on Tuesday morning, he didn’t meet with leaders from countries directly connected to the border crisis, such as Mexico or Guatemala, or talk about the unprecedented number of illegal migrants crossing the border. Border officials have encountered over 1.9 million illegal migrants in the 2023 fiscal year as of July.
“How is this something that he doesn’t address when he’s in New York City where there’s a crisis unfolding less than a mile away from where he’s speaking?” MacCallum asked Kirby.
“Well, Martha, he did address the challenge of regional migration in the speech,” Kirby said. “He talked about the Los Angeles Declaration for Migration and support for migrants. He knows, and he addressed it again in the remarks, that this is a regional thing. You’re not wrong, I mean, there are more people on the move in this hemisphere now than we’ve seen since World War II. And you’re absolutely right, as the weather cools down and conditions get a little bit better —”
“You’re blaming climate change for the reason that people are coming?” MacCallum interrupted.
“No, no, no. I’m talking about just the weather conditions as we head into fall. It’s just easier to be on the move,” Kirby said.
Kirby called on Congress to allocate $4 billion toward border security and touted how the administration handed both New York City and the state of New York $140 million in the 2023 fiscal year to tackle the crisis.. (RELATED: ‘I’m Not Deflecting’: Fox News Contributor Gets Into Near Shouting Match With Democrat Over Border Crisis)
MacCallum questioned why Biden didn’t call on Mexico and Guatemala on Tuesday to stop the flow of illegal migration in their own countries to prevent them from reaching the U.S.
“So why doesn’t the president address this? It’s a very urgent need in this country while he’s talking to the U.N. Really missed opportunity today?” she asked.
“No, no, no. I mean, he’s absolutely addressed this,” Kirby said.
“He doesn’t talk about it, John,” MacCallum responded. “He never talks about it.”
Kirby argued Biden has addressed the crisis with these leaders by traveling to Mexico City a few months back and at two Summits for Democracy. Kirby cited famine, drought and other difficult conditions as the reason the migrants are on the move in record numbers.
“But 89% of these people don’t have legitimate asylum claims,” MacCallum said.
“Which is why he has worked so hard in the region to develop these centers around several countries where people can apply for legal pathways to come in,” Kirby said.
“That great. It’s not working,” MacCallum said.
“And it’s why we bolstered, as much as we can, we bolstered security at the border to try to deter illegal immigration,” Kirby said.
Illegal immigration has surged since Biden assumed office in January 2021. Encounters at the southern border spiked from 458,088 in fiscal year 2020 to over 1.7 million in fiscal year 2021, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). There were over 2 million encounters in fiscal year 2022.
The migrant crisis has recently overwhelmed New York City, prompting Eric Adams to call on Biden to do more to address it.
New York City has spent over $1.5 billion this year on the migrant crisis alone, leading the city to slash funding for the New York Police Department (NYPD) and New York City Fire Department (FDNY).
New York City currently takes in over 10,000 migrants per month and is projected to spend $12 billion over the course of three years to build shelters and necessities for the migrants.