Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had no answer when he was pressed on “CBS This Morning” Monday over why Vice President Kamala Harris didn’t visit a child migrant facility during her border trip.
"Mr. Secretary, why not visit Fort Bliss, which is just 10 miles away and has hundreds of unaccompanied migrant children, reportedly in very difficult conditions?" asked co-anchor Tony Dokoupil.
"The vice president and the president directed Xavier Becerra, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, to visit Fort Bliss, which is under his responsibility, and he's doing so today,” Mayorkas replied.
"It was just 10 miles away,” Dokoupil countered, “why not include it on the vice president's trip?"
"Well, you know, we had quite a bit to see, and we were able to meet with the CBP, the Customs and Border Protection personnel, both in the central processing center and the port of entry,” Mayorkas said. "The vice president was able to meet with migrant children and understand why they fled their home in desperation. She was also able to meet with community members to understand what they have been learning form the migrants who fled the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador."
WATCH: @DHSgov @SecMayorkas discusses his visit to the border crossing in El Paso with Vice President Harris and how the administration is working to improve the conditions for migrant children. pic.twitter.com/blbS6zhJqD
— CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) June 28, 2021
Last week, the Biden administration said it is looking into conditions at Fort Bliss after reports that conditions at the facility are so poor migrant children “have been constantly monitored for self-harm, escape attempts and panic attacks, according to CBS News.
Critics have blasted Harris for her trip, with former acting ICE Director Tom Homan saying she only accomplished getting a photo-op.
"She got a photo-op opportunity. That was it. I mean, she didn’t even go to the Rio Grande valley the epicenter. She went to El Paso. She never left a air-conditioned building,” he told Fox Business.