Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) said Thursday that there is “no question” the migrant caravan of Central American asylum-seekers was politicized before this year’s midterm elections.
“There’s no question that the issue of the caravans was an issue that was inflated for political purposes, to influence the midterm elections,” Harris told reporters in a brief interview.
Harris, a potential 2020 Democratic presidential contender, also said she’s “sure” there will be enough officials to process individuals who arrive at the United States’ southern border.
President Trump railed against the migrant caravan for weeks leading up to the Nov. 6 midterm elections, but Republicans have said little about the caravan after Election Day.
Harris spoke to reporters Thursday shortly after Ronald Vitiello, Trump’s nominee to head U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE), addressed senators on Capitol Hill.
The Democratic senator pressed Vitiello for information on pregnant women in ICE custody during the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing.
Vitiello offered little information on the number of pregnant women in ICE detention centers, promising senators, including Harris, that he would provide that data “by the end of the day.”
– Molly Hooper
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