Vice President Kamala Harris, who currently appears to be the likely Democratic nominee for president, once blamed inadequate “climate adaptation” for the unprecedented immigration crisis at America’s borders.
Harris — whom President Joe Biden deputized to help manage the administration’s border strategy as the “border czar” — said that lacking “climate resilience” and “climate adaptation” are root causes of illegal immigration during a May 2021 panel discussion. Since the Biden administration came into office in January 2021, there have been at least 6.7 million illegal migrant encounters at America’s southern border alone, according to the House Committees on Homeland Security and Oversight and Accountability.
“We want to help people find hope at home. And so, we are focused on addressing both the acute factors and the root causes of migration. I believe this is an important distinction. We must focus on both, First, the acute factors: the catastrophes that are causing people to leave right now. The hurricanes, the pandemic, the drought and extreme food insecurity,” Harris told attendees of the Washington Conference on the Americas in May 2021. “And then there are the longstanding issues, the root causes. And I’m thinking of corruption, violence and poverty, a lack of economic opportunity, the lack of climate adaptation and climate resilience, the lack of good governance.”
Specifically, Harris was tasked with addressing the “root causes” of mass-immigration to the U.S. rather than overseeing every facet of the administration’s border policies and enforcement. While Harris has suggested that climate change and a lack of “climate resilience” in other parts of the world have contributed greatly to the ongoing immigration surge, Trump administration officials, Republicans and immigrants themselves have credited the Biden administration’s departure from Trump-era border policies for incentivizing migrants to come to the U.S.
In addition to record encounters, law enforcement recorded 380 encounters with individuals on the terrorist screening data set between ports of entry in the period spanning fiscal year 2021 to today, according to Customs and Border Patrol data. Between fiscal years 2017 and 2020, there were 14 such encounters recorded at America’s borders.
Some corporate media outlets have previously referred to Harris as the “border czar” when she was first assigned to work on the issue. However, some outlets have moved to clarify their older coverage now that Harris appears likely to be the nominee; Axios issued an editor’s note on a story clarifying that the outlet’s past coverage using the term “border czar” was incorrect.
Many of Harris’ past positions, including those on climate change and the government’s role in addressing it, have resurfaced now that she appears to be the likely Democratic presidential nominee following Biden’s decision to quit the race. Though she has walked some of her positions back over the years, Harris endorsed a fracking ban, co-sponsored the Green New Deal, backed a ban on plastic straws and said that she would be in favor of changing dietary guidelines to reduce red meat consumption.
The Harris campaign did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
Featured Image Media Credit: Office of the Attorney General of California
