Tipsheet

Surprise: Border Czar Visits Texas, Fails to Visit or Mention Border Crisis

The Biden administration's border czar traveled to Texas over the weekend, but she evidently wanted to talk about everything but the border.  Vice President Kamala Harris attended two events in Austin, including a high-dollar Democratic fundraiser, at which she spoke about abortion, contraception, gay rights, 'voting rights,' and virtually everything under the sun.  Except, that is, the Texas-centric fiasco at the Southern border that she's at least ostensibly been tasked with addressing.  That she would scrupulously avoid this matter is entirely unsurprising; she's averted her eyes from it as much as possible over the past year-plus, with the exceptions of fanciful 'root causes' lip service, and one extremely brief photo op far from the epicenter of the problem. 

This pitiful showing is still more than can be said of President Biden, who has not been to the country's southern boundary in well over a decade.  He'll occasionally chime in to smear border patrol agents with a provable lie, or some such, but that's roughly the extent of his interest in the historic humanitarian and security crisis his policies have turbocharged.  A House Republican who represents a border district noticed that Harris was coming to his state and repeatedly urged her to come tour the border: 

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) also noticed that the VP was coming to the Lone Star State, with a glaring omission on her schedule: 

Despite the pressure, Harris attended her abortion festival and her Democratic fundraiser (virtually indistinguishable these days), then jetted out of the state.  The border czar, once again, couldn't be bothered to face the border -- though a cynic might insist upon recalling how eager she was to visit, back when she believed there was some political utility in doing so, hence a series of anguished photo shoots by elected Democrats.  Those days are gone.  Instead, over the weekend, well-heeled, progressive Austin audiences were treated to vice presidential pearls of wisdom like this: 

She is talking to adults here, mind you, not first graders.  It should go without saying that, when she wasn't off doing something else, Harris was an enthusiastic participant in filibusters during her short stint in the US Senate.  When Democrats use that parliamentary tool, it's standing up to power, or whatever.  When Republicans do the same, it's an echo of Jim Crow, obstructing progress.  More cringeworthy was Harris' latest ode to Venn diagrams, a subject that she raises often, cracking herself up: 

Hilarity.  Based on available reporting, would you care to guess who didn't attend Harris' events in his state?  Robert Francis O'Rourke, the Democratic nominee for governor, that's who.  I'm sure it was just a scheduling conflict, and not the abiding unpopularity of the Biden administration, and the Vice President personally, among Texans.  There's a reason why Texas Republicans celebrated when Harris' trip was announced.  Meanwhile, the border crisis grinds on and on:

I'll leave you with this.  Might another group of illegal immigrants soon be 'cruelly' flown to one of the most elite vacation destinations in America?