Kamala Harris blames Congress for border crisis, sees herself as protector of democracy

Kamala Harris placed responsibility on Congress for the ongoing border crisis in a recent NPR interview, adding that she feels she has a priority to defend democracy.

NPR's Asma Khalid was unable to get clear answers from the second-highest-ranking politician in the country, receiving runaround responses regarding the border and social media "misinformation."

When asking about the state of illegal immigration on the borders of California and Mexico, she asked the vice president, "I'm curious if there's anything you feel that you all can do unilaterally."

With Khalid describing the situation as "incredibly dire," Harris replied saying that "it's right to say we need leadership on this issue, particularly from Congress."

"We are going to do everything that's within our ability as the executive branch, and that means, again, putting more agents on the border as appropriate, so that we can manage what might be an influx," the vice president added.

According to U.S. Customs and Border protection, encounters at the southwest border are averaging around 230,000 encounters per month in 2022. Compared by year, 2020 saw around 450,000 encounters total, while 2021 had 1.7 million and 2022 saw 2.3 million.

Despite the large influx of migrants, Harris says that the Biden administration has been working effectively to address the reasons that so many are fleeing to the U.S., saying that "the work that we have done that has been about addressing the root causes of migration, from, for example, the northern part of Central America, is having an impact."

NPR's reporter also asked the VP if she planned to stop using Twitter, or if there was a scenario in which she could see herself or her team stop using the platform.

"She did not really answer that question," the reporter noted in a recap of the interview.

However, Harris mentioned the importance of defending democracy when asked about the potential for "Russian interference" on social media:

"When I see how social media is used [for disinformation], it causes me a deep level of concern as someone who has a responsibility and a first priority to consider and protect our nation's security, including the security of our democracy."

"I fully expect, and would require, that leaders in that sector cooperate and work with us who are concerned with national security and concerned about upholding and defending our democracy," Harris concluded.