Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas explained to "60 Minutes" why he does not state publicly the ongoing disaster as the U.S.-Mexico border is a "crisis," despite being more honest about the situation in private settings with Border Patrol in the past.
The report noted even with the millions of illegal immigrants who turned themselves in to Border Patrol over the past few years, in hope of getting released while seeking asylum, the Department of Homeland Security has recorded a record number of people who managed to avoid apprehension, around 600,000.
Mayorkas said what is happening at the southern border is a challenge, but when pressed why he won't using the term "crisis" he said it is because it is admitting defeat.
"I view it as a significant challenge," he said.
"Because I have tremendous faith in the people of the Department of Homeland Security. And a crisis, speaks to me, of a withdrawal from our mission and we are only putting more force and more energy into it."
WATCH: When pressed by 60 Minutes, Alejandro Mayorkas REFUSES to call 600,000 illegals who EVADED Border Patrol Agents this year a “crisis.”
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) April 2, 2023
Mayorkas: “A ‘crisis’ speaks to me of a withdrawal from our mission.”
Gaslighting! He has withdrawn completely from enforcing our border. pic.twitter.com/gFZAmWZjq3
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In leaked conversations, Mayorkas has been more frank about the situation at the border. In 2021 while visiting the Rio Grande Valley Sector, he said, "A couple of days ago I was down in Mexico, and I said look, you know, if, if our borders are the first line of defense, we're going to lose and this is unsustainable. We can't continue like this, our people in the field cant continue and our system isn't built for it."
While visiting Border Patrol agents in the Yuma Sector in 2022, Mayorkas admitted the state of the border is the worst it has ever been in many decades. One agent turned his back towards Mayorkas out of frustration.
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