New York City’s migrant crisis is one border cities have been dealing with for years, according to a former Border Patrol Chief.
Chris Clem joined Jacob Rees-Mogg on GBN America to discuss Biden’s handling of the city’s issues after former governor Andrew Cuomo slated the president’s response as the “worst government blunder” he’s seen in his “entire life”.
The Big Apple’s migrant explosion has seen the city’s top officials become embroiled in a row with the White House.
Mayor Eric Adams has been forced to defend City Hall and has hit out at the administrative processes in place to enact change.
Chris Clem
GBN AMERICA
Clem says the White House will be familiar with New York’s frustrations as some border cities have experienced similar issues before.
“We’re eight or nine months out from election day and it’s important for Biden to at least make a forward-facing attempt to tackle the migrant crisis”, he said.
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Eric Adams is dealing with a migrant crisis in America
GETTY“But there’s been no progress, no significant changes and about migrants showing up in New York City, it’s not a good place to be, to have to use that as an example to open people’s eyes.
“Unfortunately, that’s the reality border communities have been facing the last three years under this administration.”
New York has been a sanctuary city since 1989, a status which forbids city officials from asking questions about a person’s immigration status, or revealing it to federal authorities.
While Mayor Eric Adams has been a staunch defender of the status, he has demanded a radical overhaul in recent weeks.
Clem told Rees-Mogg that the city has to take some responsibility for the crisis given its lax policy.
“If you’re going to claim that you’re a sanctuary city and you welcome all these migrants, and that’s what it took to wake up these people, it will be worth it in the long run”, he said.
“We need to secure our border and we need to come up with some better, more efficient pathways for lawful migration.”
Biden is under pressure to tackle the unprecedented levels of migration the US faces ahead of this year’s election.
Polls have his likely opponent, Donald Trump, put down as the most favourable of the two when it comes to tackling the issue.
Biden will point to the pent up demand built up over the course of the Covid pandemic being a key contributor to the staggering numbers of people crossing the southern border.