The security and humanitarian issues at stake in Afghanistan, US-Mexico border

Amna Nawaz:

That’s right, Judy.

Well, we know, of course, part of her portfolio is to oversee those root causes and address those from — coming from those three Central American countries of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. She’s been fielding a lot of questions since getting that portfolio about when she was going to the border from journalists, but also criticism from Republicans about why she had not been.

Harris’ office and Symone Sanders from her office told us last night, of course she always planned to go, but because her portfolio has a foreign policy lens, she wanted to go to Guatemala and Mexico first to look at the causes.

The trip to the border today takes a closer look at the effects. So she saw that, as we mentioned in the news summary, by visiting the port of entry, the central processing center, one of the busiest ports of entry in the entire country, we should mention, in El Paso. She spoke with some agents, spoke with some migrants.

We should know, Judy, she did not visit Fort Bliss, which is right now one of the emergency intake shelters that was set up very quickly to address the influx of unaccompanied children that was coming across the border earlier months. That facility can hold up to about 5,000 children and was the subject of some concerns because of disturbing reports about conditions inside.

I asked the White House about this. And, actually, a White House official told me she may not have visited the facility, but she did meet with the managing attorney who oversees legal services for children there and also that, of course, this remains a concern from them. The shelter is getting more resources.

I should also mention I spoke with Veronica Escobar, who accompanied Vice President Harris on the trip. She’s, of course, the congresswoman representing that district. She had invited Harris. After they spoke, she published an op-ed earlier in the year, saying, this is what we need to do at the border.

And that is part of the backstory of how this trip came to be today — Judy.