Americans in the Lone Star State graded Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas’s handling of the southern border crisis and shared whether they think he should resign from his post.
“I would say a C,” Art, who was visiting Austin from Amarillo, Texas, told Fox News. “He hasn’t shown me a whole lot yet.”
Girish, an Austin resident, gave Mayorkas a B.
“It looks like there is quite a bit of congestion and like there’s quite a bit of immigrants in the border,” he said. “Hopefully it will get resolved shortly.”
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Mayorkas described the Biden administration’s recent efforts to control illegal immigration as “extraordinary” in a May 14 interview with CNN’s “State of the Union.” His remarks followed a surge in border crossings after the expiration of Title 42, an emergency health policy that allowed for tighter border restrictions to reduce transmission of COVID-19.
Mayorkas told CNN host Dana Bash that homeland security had boosted the amount of personnel, transportation and other resources at the border in anticipation of Title 42’s lifting. “It’s extraordinary what we’ve done over the past 18 months or so,” he said.
MAYORKAS PRESSED ABOUT POST-TITLE 42 BORDER CHAOS: ‘YOU HAD TWO YEARS TO PREPARE FOR THIS’
Dan, of Kansas City, gave Mayorkas a D-minus, saying “he’s not doing his job right.”
Ed similarly disapproved of Mayorkas’s border performance, giving him an F.
“He’s dishonest, and he basically misrepresents what’s going on,” the Round Rock, Texas, resident told Fox News.
Border authorities encountered more than 10,000 migrants per day on May 8, 9 and 10, the three days before Title 42 expired, Customs and Border Protection sources told Fox News. Those figures set the record for single-day border crossings. By comparison, Border Patrol agents on average encountered nearly 7,000 migrants per day over the past year, according to CBP data.
Girish said he believed Mayorkas deserved more opportunities to manage the immigration influx.
“I think we should give [him] a chance to solve the situation rather than asking [him] to resign,” he told Fox News.
Dan doubted that a Mayorkas resignation would be enough to stem the surge of illegal aliens.
“I’m not sure it’d make a difference,” he told Fox News. “I think it comes from the top down.”
To watch the full interviews, click here.