North Dakota Gov. Burgum called out Vice President Harris for allowing for “open borders” under her administration, also criticizing the polices of President Biden on border security.
“Harris wants to have open borders, just like Biden has,” Burgum said in an interview on CNN Friday. “That’s one of the big issues that people are going to be facing. And we’re very clear about how President Trump stands on that issue.”
While Harris signaled recently in her sit-down interview Thursday with CNN’s Dana Bash that she would “enforce” laws on immigration, she has faced criticism for her record on the border during her administration, including the number of border crossings.
HARRIS SHIFTS KEY POSITIONS ON BORDER, ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AS CAMPAIGN PROMISES ‘PRAGMATIC’ APPROACH
When responding to former President Trump’s stance on the border, Burgum said that Republicans believe that certain issues, including enforcing border laws, are under the authority of the federal government.
“One of the things that’s very clear is that the border, as part of national security, is the federal government’s job,” Burgum said. “That’s not left to the states. President Trump wants to secure our border.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican, a Democrat, or an independent,” Burgum later said. “Inflation, high interest rates, wars abroad, open borders, those are the things that have hurt every American.”
Burgum said that America needs to return to “low inflation, low interest rates, peace abroad, and an energy policy that wasn’t creating poverty here at home and empowering our adversaries.”
“Those are the issues that the election is going to turn on,” he said, avoiding questions about abortion and in vitro fertilization.
Harris’ stance on border and immigration laws have changed in recent years.
Harris told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2015 that “an undocumented immigrant is not a criminal.” She also posted the claim on social media. And in a discussion with the late Arizona GOP Sen. John McCain’s daughter, Meghan, during a 2019 episode of “The View,” Harris reiterated her stance.
“I would not make it a crime punishable by jail,” she said. “It should be a civil enforcement issue but not a criminal enforcement issue.”
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Fox News’ Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
