First on Fox: A top House committee is doubling down on its efforts to obtain documents from the Biden administration Vice President Kamala Harris’ Lawmakers have called it the “worst border crisis in American history.”
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-KY, wrote to the caretaker Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Troy Miller acted last month on a request for documents and communications between Harris’ office and the C.B.P.
“It is critical that the Committee and the American people understand Vice President Harris’ role as border czar in the current border crisis,” Comer said in the letter, obtained by Fox News Digital.
Top House committee seeks internal documents on Harris’ role in border crisis: ‘A total failure’
Rep. James Comer speaks during a news conference at the US Capitol Visitors Center on April 30, 2024. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“Massive illegal entry and release Illegal alien The Biden-Harris administration has led to murder, sexual assault, and serious bodily injury against many Americans at the hands of illegal aliens in the United States. These crimes should never have happened.”
The letter cited several recent crimes allegedly committed by illegal immigrants, including a crime committed by an MS-13 gang member and a rape. New York City, Allegedly by two migrants.
Comer says the committee set an Aug. 20 deadline, and reiterated the request on Aug. 20 and Sept. 6. The deadline is now set for Oct. 1, and Comer has threatened additional action if the request isn’t met.
Trump makes new promise amid Haiti refugee row: ‘I will protect our cities’
“If the CBP continues to withhold documents and communications on this matter, the Committee will consider alternative measures to obtain this information, including compulsory process,” he said.
The fight over the documents comes amid a debate over who is responsible for the border crisis and which presidential candidate is best suited to fix it. Republicans have blamed the Biden-Harris administration’s policies for the crisis, saying the historic three-year crisis came as a direct result of the rollback of Trump-era policies and the administration’s implementation of “open border” policies.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Phoenix Awards Dinner on Saturday, September 14, 2024, in Washington, DC. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
They have focused on Harris because of the role she has played in tackling the “root causes” of migration, a title she was given in 2021. That led to her being dubbed the “border czar,” but it’s a title the White House rejects.
The Biden administration has argued it is dealing with a historic hemisphere-wide crisis that requires more funding from Congress and immigration reform to fix a “broken” system. It has pointed to a sharp decrease in numbers since Biden signed an executive order limiting arrivals in June.
Officials say more than 100 people have died in this incident. 50% reduction in encounters This also includes August encounters which were 68% fewer than in August 2023.
For more coverage on the border security crisis, click here
Meanwhile, Harris has been critical of former President Trump for not supporting bipartisan legislation introduced earlier this year that conservatives said would regularize the high numbers but which supporters said would increase funding at the border and limit entry into the U.S.
Click here to get the Fox News app
“Last year, Joe and I brought together Democrats and conservative Republicans to write the strongest border bill in decades. The Border Patrol supported it. But Donald Trump believes the border deal would hurt his campaign, so he ordered his allies in Congress to kill the deal. Well, I refuse to play politics with our security, and here’s my pledge to you: As president, I will bring back the bipartisan border security bill that he killed, and I will sign it into law,” she said at the Democratic National Convention last month.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the vice president said Republicans “continue to block the bipartisan border security bill supported by the Biden-Harris Administration and a bipartisan group of Senators.”
“This administration has committed record funding to border security, and continues to fight to ensure the proper resources are available at the border, including deploying state-of-the-art fentanyl-detection machines. The administration’s executive actions have reduced unauthorized crossings to lower levels than when Trump left office,” spokesman Ernesto Apreza told Fox News Digital. “President Biden and Vice President Harris are leading the way on border security solutions, while congressional Republicans continue to exploit the issue to score political points.”
