Vice President Kamala Harris accused Republican governors who bused migrants to Democrat-run cities across the country of treating human beings “as pawns in a political game” in a new interview.
Harris made the comments in an interview with ABC News Live, a preview clip of which was released Sunday, after being asked about critics of the Biden administration’s handling of the crisis at the southern border.
“So first of all, let’s agree that people should not be the pawns in a political game. Human beings should not be treated as pawns in a political game,” Harris said. “What is happening in terms of sending these migrants most of whom had flee great harm, and sending them across the country for the sake of some political showmanship. It’s just irresponsible. ”
“If you want to deal with the problem, then do it, if you are a leader, by participating in the solution,” she continued. “And one very clear solution, very significant solution, has been in front of us for years now. We need to pass immigration reform.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, one of the White House’s top critics on the issue as a border state Republican, has sent busloads of migrants to places like New York City, Washington D.C., Chicago, and Martha’s Vineyard to highlight the record rates of illegal migration.
Abbott’s critics argue that the practice of shipping migrants across the country is inhumane, though he has defended the move as necessary to lessen the burden on the state’s overwhelmed border communities.
Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a letter to Abbott in May that her city had received more than 8,000 asylum-seekers since last August.
* Article From: The Washington Examiner
