Vice President Kamala Harris is preparing to visit the battleground state of Arizona on Friday, Sept. 27. Her plans for once she gets there are making waves in the presidential race as reports indicate Harris will visit the southern border with Mexico.
A recent New York Times/Siena College poll found that immigration is the second most important issue for Arizonans, behind the economy. Harris’ role in the Biden administration when it comes to immigration enforcement has been a point of contention in the race for the White House.
The Harris campaign maintains that President Joe Biden tasked her to lead efforts to find the root causes of migration to the U.S.-Mexico border. Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, said that amounted to Harris being the border czar.
According to statistics from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, migrant encounters hit a record high in 2023, but apprehensions this past summer were down compared to the previous year. The Biden administration touted new immigration standards that it imposed.
Trump posted on Truth Social about Harris’ upcoming visit.
“After almost four years, border czar Kamala Harris has decided, for political reasons that it’s time for her to go to our broken southern border,” Trump said. “What disgrace she waited so long…”
Arizona has eleven electoral votes. The state went to Joe Biden in 2020. The recent New York Times poll showed Trump ahead in the key state by five percentage points.
