April 20, 20212:46 PM EDT
United StatesAnalysis: Bumpy first weeks of Harris’ immigration role show challenges of the job
Nandita Bose
When President Joe Biden entrusted Vice President Kamala Harris in March with leading U.S. diplomatic efforts to cut immigration from Mexico and Central America’s “Northern Triangle,†experts described the job as both “perilous†and a “political grenade.â€
The subsequent weeks have shown just how challenging the role will be as the administration seeks to defuse a crisis at the border that Republicans have used to hammer Biden, a Democrat.
Harris has pushed Central American countries to increase troops at their borders, administration officials said, and she said she plans to visit Guatemala and Mexico, which could happen in as soon as a month.
At a meeting with advisers last week, which focused heavily on anti-corruption efforts, Harris spoke about tackling the root causes of migration that have plagued the region for decades - gang violence, drug-trafficking cartels, hurricanes, floods and earthquakes - with diplomacy.
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/bumpy-first-weeks-harris-immigration-role-show-challenges-job-2021-04-20/?rpc=401&