[CNN] Senior US officials will head to Mexico Wednesday to seek more help from their counterparts to drive down border crossings as President Joe Biden faces increasing pressure over the handling of the US southern border.
Immigration has been a political vulnerability for Biden amid fierce criticism from Republicans and some members of his own party over the situation at the US-Mexico border. This month, the issue fell at the center of the president’s foreign policy agenda, as the White House lobbied for aid to Ukraine and Israel amid their war efforts. Lack of consensus over border policy changes ultimately kept Biden from clinching billions of dollars in funds for Ukraine, Israel and the border before the end of the year.
Ahead of Wednesday’s meeting, Homeland Security officials have discussed a range of ways Mexico can help drive down numbers at the US border that will be among their asks, including moving migrants south, controlling the railways that are used by migrants to move north, and providing incentives to not journey to the border, like visas, to remain in the country and avoid migrating irregularly.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas and White House Homeland Security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall will attend the gathering, which bookends a year that kicked off with migration as a key issue. |