Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas vehemently denied “disinformation” swirling around that the Harris-Biden administration is seeking to attract migrants into the country to vote in the election.
Nearly two-thirds of voters who intend to back former President Donald Trump believe that the Harris-Biden administration is deliberately trying to permit migrants to pour across the US-Mexico border. Of that group, about 74% believe it is so that they can vote, a recent CBS News/YouGov poll found.
“What a powerful example of disinformation,” Mayorkas vented to CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday. “The notion, that we in law enforcement have sought to intentionally allow individuals to cross the border illegally for the purpose of voting is preposterous.”
“Everyone should condemn that rhetoric, everyone, regardless of party affiliation.”
Claims about the Harris-Biden administration’s intentions have circulated on social media. Last month, for example, Elon Musk alleged that Democrats are expediting the number of illegal immigrants who are becoming citizens as “a surefire way to win every election” over the long-term.
Before Congress adjourned for recess, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) had pushed for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would’ve demanded voters show proof of citizenship to cast their ballots.
That legislation ultimately went nowhere and House Republicans openly questioned why Democrats tanked the bill.
Despite it currently being against the law, Johnson predicted Sunday on “Face the Nation” that “noncitizens are going to vote.”
“There [are] no facts underlying these assertions. They are extremely damaging. It causes people to lose confidence in the integrity of the election system, and we need people in positions of authority to actually communicate accurate information to the voting public,” Mayorkas shot back.
Mayorkas also emphasized that border crossings are at a low point under the Harris-Biden administration relative to the first three years.
Polls have regularly shown that voters generally trust Trump more than Harris when it comes to handling the US-Mexico border.
There have been well over 8 million encounters at the US-Mexico border under President Biden’s watch, according to data from US Customs and Border Patrol.
Vice President Kamala Harris has fired back at GOP attacks over her track record on the border, by pointing to a Senate border security bill that flamed out earlier this year.
She accused former President Donald Trump of spiking that legislation. Republicans countered by claiming that Biden could reverse the border mayhem, in part, via executive action.
Biden eventually took executive action to limit asylum access to illegal immigrants who cross the border illegally.
Mayorkas rejected any notion that Biden’s executive actions proved he didn’t need Congress.
“No, and remember where we were. We were enforcing Title 42, the public health authority, until May of last year,” Mayorkas said, referencing the pandemic-era policy under Title 42 which empowered the government to expel migrants from the border.
The DHS chief contended that the Harris-Biden administration needed more funding and resources from Congress but was forced to make do with what it had.
“The President acted, and remember, we had to build the capacity to implement so successfully the President’s proclamation, and that is indeed what we have been doing month after month,” he added.
During the interview, Mayorkas also publicly pleaded with Congress to marshal more resources for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“FEMA has the money to address the immediate needs of individuals impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton,” Mayorkas explained. “But we need Congress to act swiftly to fund FEMA and specifically its disaster relief fund because hurricane season is not over.”
Johnson has said that Congress will act when it gets a specific proposal.
“Congress will do whatever is necessary to cover the needs of the people,” he told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “The states have to go and calculate and assess the need, and then they submit that to Congress.”
“That takes some time, especially when you have a storm this broad and this wide affecting so many people. So as soon as those numbers are submitted to Congress we will act.”
