Reporter Clashes With White House Press Secretary Over Outrageous Border Claim
The Biden administration’s lax immigration policies have been blamed for a record number of illegal border crossings since his inauguration last year. Nevertheless, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre recently made the bold claim that migrants are not simply walking across the border from Mexico into the United States.
Her remark came in response to a question from Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy, who noted that America continues to implement a strict vaccination policy for foreign visitors while doing little, if anything, to ensure that undocumented immigrants are vaccinated against COVID-19.
When Jean-Pierre attempted to dismiss his comparison as invalid, he responded: “How is it two different things? Somebody unvaccinated comes over on a plane. You say that’s not OK. Somebody walks into Texas or Arizona unvaccinated, they’re allowed to stay? Why?”
The Biden spokeswoman accused Doocy of misrepresenting the facts, but he maintained that many migrants do, in fact, simply cross the border into the U.S.
“That’s what’s happening,” he responded. “I know that’s not what you guys want to happen — but that is what is happening.”
As Jean-Pierre started to say that “it’s not like somebody walks over,” Doocy shot back: “That’s exactly what’s happening.”
While some Biden supporters echoed Jean-Pierre’s attempt to spin the issue, it was clear that many social media users determined that Doocy’s assessment was more accurate.
“Someone send Jean-Pierre some video of people literally walking over,” tweeted columnist Karol Markowicz.
A number of conservative political operatives joined right-wing pundits in slamming the White House’s provably inaccurate take on the nation’s porous southern border.
Nate Madden, a spokesman for Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), asked: “Who you gonna believe, 18 months of footage or your lyin’ eyes?”
Prominent Republicans have repeatedly accused the current administration of exacerbating the border crisis. Last month, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) said that “it’s not hard to understand” why the situation has gotten worse since Biden entered office.
“You don’t need some Ivy League study to figure this out,” Rubio explained. “If you tell people, ‘Hey, you shouldn’t come, but if you do, you’re going to get to stay,’ people are going to come. And they’re coming at a rate that is unparalleled.”
