Democratic US presidential candidate Kamala Harris visited the border between the US and Mexico for the first time in their current campaign. She is calling for tighter restrictions on asylum for immigrants and has pledged to make it her "top priority" ending the smuggling of fentanyl, reported Reuters and the Associated Press, quoted by BTA.
Harris outlined his plans to fix the "broken immigration system" during a visit to the border town of Douglas, Arizona, home to fewer than 17,000 people. The vice president, who was nominated for the presidential vote after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, accused her rival for the post, Donald Trump, of "fanning the flames of fear and division" on the impact of immigrants on the American way of life.
About 7 million migrants have been arrested illegally crossing the US-Mexico border during the administration of President Joe Biden, government figures show. The record high number fueled criticism from Trump and his Republican Party of Biden and Harris, according to Reuters.
Immigration is a top issue for US voters. In Arizona, the race is hotly contested, and many Hispanic voters are being courted. from both parties.
At the same time, the US-Mexico border continues to be a gateway for illegal imports of fentanyl, a pharmaceutical drug that is a leading cause of fatal overdoses in the US.
Harris has called for more punitive measures against people crossing the border illegally, following a ban on asylum for those who enter illegally passed earlier this year.
"I will take further action to keep the border closed. Those who cross our borders illegally will be detained and removed and barred from re-entering the country for a period of five years," Harris stressed.
"We will bring tougher criminal charges against repeat offenders, and if someone does not apply for asylum at a legal port of entry and instead crosses our border illegally, they will be denied asylum," the presidential candidate added.
Harris emphasized his goal of "humane" immigration program, saying he would work with Congress to create a path to citizenship for so-called "dreamers" - hundreds of thousands of migrants who entered the US illegally even as children.
She rejected "the false choice that suggests we must choose between securing our border or creating an immigration system that is safe, orderly and humane", stressing that "we can and must do both ."
In Douglas, Harris spoke with Customs and Border Protection officials and saw part of a border barrier built between 2011 and 2012 during the administration of her running mate Barack Obama, the White House said.
The vice president also toured US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) anti-narcotics operations and reviewed screening technology used to seize illegal drugs, including fentanyl, her campaign staff said. It also notes that border agents stopped more fentanyl at ports of entry in 2022 and 2023 than in the previous five fiscal years combined.
She promised to pass legislation that would increase the number of Border Patrol agents by 1,500, asylum officers by 4,300 and immigration judges by 100.