Mayorkas, who appeared on nearly all major political shows on Sunday morning, tried to deliver a consistent message while pressuring the Biden government over conditions in overcrowded detention centers for unaccompanied immigrant children.
“The border is closed. We are expelling families. We are expelling single adults, ”Mayorkas said on NBC News’s“ Meet the Press ”Sunday, adding that unaccompanied minors are now not allowed to attempt a trip to the US-Mexico border. “We strongly urge, and the message is clear, not to do this now. I cannot stress enough the dangers of the journey they are taking. “
But the administration’s message was at times contradictory, particularly Mayorkas’s message that asylum seekers should not come “now,” while other members of the administration have said they shouldn’t come, period and seek asylum from where they are. That has even frustrated some of their Democratic allies who are steeped in immigration issues.
Democrats have stressed that they are trying to take a more humane approach to immigration. Mayorkas reiterated on Sunday that the Biden administration would not “expel young, vulnerable children into the Mexican desert” as the previous administration did.
Mayorkas also blamed Trump for decommissioning processes such as the Central American Minors Program, which set forth an “orderly, humane, and efficient way to enable children to file their claims under US law in their home countries.” It would take time to rebuild such processes, he said repeatedly.