Fetterman: Democrats bungled border issue under Biden

[Polybius]

Source: The Hill

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) declared Monday that the Democratic Party mishandled the critical issue of border security under President Biden by letting millions of migrants into the country over four years, giving Republicans a potent issue to campaign on.

Fetterman took his own party to task on immigration and border security during a debate, aired on Fox Nation, with Pennsylvania’s Republican Sen. Dave McCormick at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate.

“That’s a mistake that our party made, and that’s the border,” Fetterman told “Fox News Sunday” anchor Shannon Bream, who moderated the debate, which was co-hosted by the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation.

Fetterman said he supports the roughly $150 billion in President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” that would go toward securing the U.S.-Mexico border and ramping up immigration enforcement within the nation.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5328603-fetterman-democrats-border-biden/

[LuvLoogie]

1. Fuck him.

Tulsi Manchin

[Cha]

49. TOTALLY thought about Gabbard.. Going on fox &

Whining about Dems.

[Born Free]

63. I am truly sorry I voted for Fetterman

Never again..

[area51]

2. No, they didn't.

That's a nazi party talking point. He might as well join the nazi party, post stroke.

[ananda]

4. Augree

He's certainly no Democrat now.

[brush]

14. Yes,, as the saying goes: With friends like him, who need enemies.

[BidenRocks]

3. John

I know you've been gone a while, but...
Biden is not the president.
Look ahead at the pain and suffering around you.
Make a difference!

[Tarzanrock]

5. Fetterman: Release your brain MRI's and ...

your PET scans and analyses of your spinal fluid. Release the neurological reports on your brain.

[sakabatou]

6. Fucking DINO

[SunSeeker]

7. We didn't bungle the border and the border is not why we lost.

[maxsolomon]

48. It was all those Trans surgeries for teen athletes we allowed.

There were up to 1 of them!

[SalamanderSleeps]

8. Fetterman Robespierre

[Aussie105]

9. Some pre-interview guidance on talking points from competent people would have helped.

Lots of other talking points more relevant these days.

But FettlePerson seems to be anti-dems these days.

[Picaro]

10. That's complete bullshit

that millions across the border is complete nonsense. That’s a trump lie. Fetterman has crossed over to the dark side.

[IbogaProject]

11. Wut ?

Biden proposed a very strict law, which the GOP kept from passing. So this is total gaslighting. This guy is really taking Manchin's place.

[thought crime]

13. Acting more like Manchin because Pennsylvania is acting more like W. Virginia?

To me it looks like Fetterman is chasing the votes. I am not saying this is okay, but it seems like Fetterman has decided he is in a Red state, not just a Purple state. Aside from that, he has health issues and I sympathize.

[BigmanPigman]

12. Wow! He has really gone nuts.

This can't be a result of a stroke. This is complete MAGA BS coming out of his mouth. Did Elon give him so drugs ro take?

[sheshe2]

15. He needs to go away...NOW.

He will vote yes on tsf's 'big beautiful bill'.

It should have been Connor Lamb in that seat.

[Cha]

50. Not only did he go on fox to Whine about Dems a la

Gabbard.. he's Lying

Who does that?!! Magas!

[sheshe2]

51. You are absolutely correct, Cha.

[Cha]

52. And, you are Corrrect about

Conor Lamb.

Funny ol World..

Conor Lamb Says Fetterman Isn’t Meeting The Moment. AOC Is On His Side.

snip*

Conor Lamb joins Lauren Egan to discuss the importance of town halls, listening to voters, and fighting against Trump. Lamb also talks about his new support from Alexandria Ocasio-Corte, and calls out John Fetterman’s collaborations against public interests.

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/conor-lamb-says-fetterman-isnt-meeting

Boom... I just found that by Searching Conor Lamb.. and am absolutely Delighted!

[sheshe2]

55. I will go read it, Cha.

Thank you! 😊

[Blue Dotty]

16. Sad Clown

Says what? Like did Biden ship people off to Forever Prison in El Salvador or something? No? Then sad sack clown should shut his pie hole.

[Paladin]

17. Instructions for Fetterman:

1. Shut the fuck up.

2. Resign, preferably by close of business today.

[AZProgressive]

18. Most voters actually disapprove of the way Trump is handling his signature issue

I'd rather go back to the status quo than dealing with Trump's immigration policies.

[Jose Garcia]

42. They didn't support what Biden was doing either:

https://news.gallup.com/poll/610322/immigration-leads-reasons-biden-detractors-disapprove.aspx

[everyonematters]

19. This is part of the reason that only 30% of the electorate is registered Democrat.

It is definitely part of the reason we lost the election. We need to convince voters that we are going to secure the Southern border. This is an issue where we are out of touch with the rest of society.

[AZProgressive]

22. Living in Arizona "the border" is not as important people in Pennsylvania or the midwest think it is

Every Republican in Arizona has campaigned on it and usually when a Republican candidate goes hard right on the border they lose statewide. Even "moderate" John McCain campaigned on "build the dang fence" during his primary runs. We actually starting getting rid of the Joe Arpaios when the Democrats started going hard right on the border including Biden endorsing a draconian law proposed by a Republican.

It is an important issue but am not interested in blocking asylum seekers. Immigrants actually commit crimes at lower rates than citizens. Comprehensive immigration reform would actually improve things quite a bit and make things safer because a lot of immigrants may not report crimes to law enforcement out of fear of being deported.

It is important to stop drug trafficking but most of those go thru points of entry and even with a silly border wall they can still catapult it over which has been done before but the US has always had drugs due to the demand here on our side of the border and they have existed since every President in the last 2 centuries and unlikely to stop soon. Things are worse with fentanyl but Trump's "solutions" are unlikely to fix America's drug problem. Not to mention people on the US side of the border profiting off weapon sales to cartels on Mexico's side of the border.

As far as the rest of society, a significant chunk actually buys into the debunked theory that Democrats are importing immigrants specifically for votes in an election. Trump's and Stephen Miller's actions are based on that debunked theory. Trump also sometimes quotes Hitler when talking about immigration. Also there is a lot of misinformation from the right but when you deal with facts that many people in Arizona have already dealt with you tend to support realistic policies.

Democratic administrations already have smart & legal ways to deal with drug trafficking and immigration and if anything it could be improved but I already lived with this from Russell Pearce & Arpaio and by 2020 we were getting rid of those politicians.

[everyonematters]

23. I don't think we need to go hard right on immigration. We just need to convince voter that we are going to secure

the Southern border.

[Polybius]

43. Funny how times change

Less than 20 years ago, saying we are going to "secure the Southern border" was considered hard right. Tom Tancredo was way, way outside of the mainstream on immigration when he ran for President in 2008.

[GP6971]

45. How did he go soft during the 3 years?

[doc03]

29. Agree that is one big reason we lost in 2024. That doesn't mean I agree with what Trump is doing. nt

[LymphocyteLover]

34. except it's a BULLSHIT issue totally weaponized by the rightwing and their media

Remember how Trump told Repubs not to pass increased border funding????

[MyOwnPeace]

58. Indeed!

There was a ‘bi-partisan’ bill ready to be passed - only to have some unelected hack tell a bunch of chicken-shit politicians that he’d be very mad at them if they passed it!

And now we have one of our own telling us it was ‘our’ fault?

I attended some of the senator’s rallies - that person on the screen is not the man I saw and heard at those rallies.

[LymphocyteLover]

62. I know!!! Argh!

[BannonsLiver]

38. But wouldn't it be easier to call those who disagree dumb, morons etc. and double down?

[MichMan]

53. Mayorkas stated multiple times that the border was secure

Voters weren't buying it unfortunately

[Cloudhopper]

20. Did this start before or after his trip to Merde-Lago? I suspect he's possibly getting

something from tRump for his actions?? Not sure, just a hunch.

[Balatro]

21. I am really starting to hate this man.

He needs to resign. He doesn't even want the job.

[wolfie001]

24. Poorly thought out reaction to a crises brought on by the republican party tells me.....

....Fetterman does not like Brown people. There's another description of a white person who shares sentiments like that. Hmmmm, what are they referred to as? Letting republicans off the hook too for extra spineless points. He's a JOKE!!! The male Sinema.

[LymphocyteLover]

33. that's long been a complaint against him... this came up during the Senate Dem primary

[wolfie001]

37. I missed the whole brouhaha

I was just happy a Dem one. Buyer's remorse.

[LymphocyteLover]

61. I was glad he won and he helped pass some of Biden's bills... but he's been really bad since

Trump won

[FakeNoose]

39. Fetterman's staffers and advisors have mostly quit

It doesn't look good for him, and I hope he resigns soon. Gov. Josh Shapiro would appoint a replacement, and I'm suggesting our former Sen. Bob Casey (who lost his bid for re-election last November) would be perfect to step in now.

Fetterman needs serious medical attention and his mental capacity has obviously diminished since the stroke. For his own good, as well as ours, he needs to resign. On top of that, Chump is using the issue of Gisela Fetterman's status as an immigrant to blackmail him. Mrs. Fetterman is a naturalized citizen since 2009, has earned multiple degrees, and she has 3 children with John. That makes her more qualified for US citizenship than Melania Chump.

[wolfie001]

40. Good for them!

I was disgusted by his visit to Mar-a-Lardo.

[Oopsie Daisy]

25. Resign now.

[MayReasonRule]

26. I'm With Mickey

[Vinca]

27. Biden tried, but the GOP blocked it on Trump's orders. Does Fetterman have any other GOP talking points?

[LymphocyteLover]

32. Remember-- they ADMITTED they were blocking border $ because Trump told them too!!!

Even though it made the border worse!!!

And of course FoxNews wouldn't bother conveying that.

Fucking insane evil republicans and fucking evil FoxNews and and fucking asshole DINOs like Fetterman will destroy this country. JFC.

[Self Esteem]

71. Biden tried too late.

He had a Democratic House and Senate in 2021 and 2022 and didn't do anything on immigration until an election year. It did look opportunistic that he waited until 2024 to act.

Biden could have been more aggressive in 2022 and 2023 with the border. I don't think that's a disingenuous or Republican talking point. But he wasn't and illegal border crossings surged to all-time highs, driving a narrative that there was a crisis at the border.

Trump sank the bill but the fact Biden and Democrats didn't move on immigration when they held the keys to the congress and the White House is the only reason Trump was able to sink it in 2024.

[Vinca]

72. Biden was kind of busy trying to bring the country back from the Covid debacle.

[Self Esteem]

73. Imagine FDR saying that about WWII and the Great Depression?

Or LBJ saying he was too focused on Vietnam to pass Medicare and the Civil Rights Act...or Obama deciding against reforming healthcare because he was still trying to bring the country back from a major economic recession?

What it sounds like you're saying is that Biden was too overwhelming to handle multiple things as president.

[Javaman]

28. it's turning out that he needs to be primaried

he's really a fuckiing halfwit.

[FakeNoose]

64. Fetterman was elected in 2022, so his term isn't up until 2028

I really, REALLY hope he resigns ... like, this year. He needs to resign soon. We can't live with this Chump-infested BS for another 3.5 years. If Fetterman resigns, Governor Josh Shapiro would select his replacement who would fill out his term. I'm hoping it would be former Sen. Bob Casey, who could step in and take over in a heartbeat.

[Strelnikov_]

30. He needs to do his job or resign

Pa. voters sent John Fetterman to represent them in the Senate. On most days, he has other ideas. | Editorial

https://archive.is/GLobN

[Kingofalldems]

31. Bad things about Democrats.

[Cha]

56. Yeah, This one.. Reacting to Fetterman going on fox

to whine about "Dems" & Joe Biden and.. Lying about it.

[Polybius]

68. There ya go

Been awhile.

[k_buddy762]

35. Fair-weather Fetterman

blows whatever way the winds blow.

Its a winning strategy and thousands of politicians have done it over the years. Sadly, most don't have the backbone to stand up to the changing winds.

[et tu]

36. his wife was an immigrant

from brazil and they have 3 kids-
wut is he thinkin???

[DSandra]

46. Dems didn't have a huge propaganda network to counter the propaganda and other disinformation from the Republicans...

So that's why they got away with framing the border issue and manipulating public opinion on it.

[Self Esteem]

47. Fetterman is right.

Biden and Democrats did bungle the border and anyone who denies it was not paying a lick of attention.

I know! People will bring up the bipartisan border deal that Trump sunk - but that only hammers home the issue even more. Democrats held the House, Senate and presidency for two years and didn't move to push for any border bill or immigration in the two years they held that power. Instead, they only acted when it became politically too toxic. It's bad optics that Biden waited until his reelection year to finally address what many felt was a growing crisis.

And I get it. Some of my friends here will say it was all fearmongering by Republicans and that the border wasn't really a big issue. Obviously the Biden White House and Senate Democrats disagreed or they wouldn't have finally relented and pushed for a pretty conservative border security bill that just ten years ago would have been thought right-wing.

Biden could have done better on the border. It's undeniable illegal crossings rose significantly until he was forced into action in 2024. It should have never gotten to that point and while his delayed action slowed down crossings by the end of 2024, by that point, perception had already set in that there was a border crisis.



Biden should not have waited until 2024 to act. The action he took in 2024 should have happened in 2022 or 2023.

[jgo]

54. In context ...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden#/media/File:2000-_Border_apprehensions_at_southwest_border.svg

[Self Esteem]

59. Yes. Typically you'll apprehend more people as more people illegally cross into the country.

Apprehensions went down in 2024 when illegal crossings went down and that only happened after Biden stopped asylum requests, which deterred people from attempting to cross illegally.

Border crossings surged because there was a perception that the border was open again - and it was fueled by both right-wing attacks that were not true (which I'm sure encouraged border crossings as those seeking to get into America heard Biden had an open border policy - which was not true) and the lack of overall action by Biden once it became clear there was a swell of immigrants trying to cross over.

The surge that happened in 2022 went pretty much unchecked until 2024 ... which happened to be an election year and by that point, Democrats were getting hammered by perception related to the border.

Trump sank the bipartisan border bill but it's also fair to question why Biden didn't attempt it earlier instead of doing it when he was up for reelection (before he dropped out). It looked like a political move - not a move to actually address the problem, which was clearly going on for two years at that point.

[MichMan]

65. To add to that, President Biden said he couldn't act on it with an executive order; it required Congress

Then after Congress failed to pass anything, he then went and issued executive orders anyway, which were pretty effective.

[Self Esteem]

70. Yup. That EO in 2022 or early 2023 could have made the issue moot.

It was a mistake by Biden to wait until an election year to act. It was probably the only area of his presidency in terms of legislation that I think he dropped the ball significantly.

His waiting until an election year just made him look weaker and opportunistic. Weaker because he didn't act fast enough and opportunistic because he waited until 2024 to actually move on it despite the issue seriously being there in 2023.

[NickB79]

60. Sadly, with climate change ramping up, northward immigration will surge

We've known this for years, that areas near the equator will shoulder an excessive burden as the planet warms. And as that happens, people will move north.

A comprehensive, forward thinking border security bill that takes these future surges into consideration has been needed for many years, because it will only get worse in the coming years. A Democratic bill could have found ways to provide compassion and care for climate refugees. But if we leave it up to the GOP, it will have no compassion, just all fascism.

[Blue Owl]

57. One of my biggest regrets is donating to his campaign a few years ago

He is not the same person he was then…..

[cadoman]

66. we lost because of racism, sexism, the border -- pick two

"dUh bOrder"

Fetterman, Fetterman, Fetterman....

*sigh*

[Cha]

67. HAS FETTERMAN "BUNGLED" ANYTHING? nt

[fujiyamasan]

69. To put it charitably

There were multiple unforced policy errors at the border. Whether admitting to that as an elected democrat is good political strategy remains to be seen (especially on Fox News).

I know that the strategy during the previous election did not work, which was defending the policies. That was clearly rejected by the voters. Even the border bill which Trump torpedoed was seen as a cynical political Hail Mary, and “too little, too late”. “The border” was always seen as Trump’s biggest perceived strength. I also think Harris got stuck with a a mostly unsolvable role without clear objectives of finding “root causes” in Latin America. She then got erroneously dubbed the “border czar”. It was easy for Trump and the right to run with it.

As for Fetterman, he’s a mess and I’m not sure I personally care what he has to say about anything, but I think he does, for the most part, have some clue what Pennsylvanians think so maybe it’s worth listening to him. Besides it may be better to get this out of the way now, rather than a few months before midterms. It’s not an easy conversation, but probably worth having among democrats.