President Joe Biden frequently mentioned his predecessor when announcing new immigration executive actions that would allow the administration to bar asylum seekers from crossing the border illegally.
Immigration and the US-Mexico border have become hot-button issues in the 2024 presidential race. Former President Donald Trump has made hardline immigration policies a cornerstone of his campaign and regularly stokes fears about entry of immigrants to the United States.
Tuesday's executive order marks an attempt by Biden to address one of his biggest political vulnerabilities head-on, just weeks before the first presidential debate with Trump.
Biden came out early attacking Republicans, saying he would prefer to solve the border problem through bipartisan measures, but blamed Trump and Republican lawmakers for blocking a bipartisan deal twice this year.
“Donald Trump told them to do it,” Biden said. “He didn't want to solve the problem. You want to use it to attack me. That is what he wanted to do: it is a cynical, extremely cynical political measure.”
Biden later pursued specific Trump-era policies, such as separating children from their families at the border or banning people from entry based on religion.
“I will not use the US military to go into neighborhoods across the country and take millions of people from their homes and families and put them in detention camps while they await deportation, as my predecessor says he will do if he takes office again.” Biden said.
What Trump said: The anti-immigrant rhetoric that defined Trump's successful 2016 campaign has darkened and become even more incendiary as he seeks a return to the White House. He has framed the current immigration crisis as an “invasion” of dangerous criminals, who in some cases “are not people.”
Some of his policy proposals include mass arrests, detentions and deportations. Federal law enforcement would be restructured to direct “massive portions” of the agency's staff toward immigration enforcement. The National Guard would be deployed and, if necessary, US troops as well.
CNN's Phil Mattingly and Andrew Seger contributed reporting to this publication.
