Press releases

Watch Kennedy’s comments here.

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today discussed the historic crisis at the U.S-Mexico border. Below are key excerpts from Kennedy’s remarks.

“I think it would be fair to say that, if you have a pulse and a marginal desire for a better life, you understand that we have a problem at the border.”

 . . .

“The American people don’t understand why a Nigerian doctor or a German machinist has to be vetted for years, but, if you can jump the fence at the southern border, you’re welcome. That makes no sense to them. 

“And I think, as a result, many Americans—perhaps even most of Americans—have concluded that this [border crisis] is purposeful. Many Americans—by some polls, most Americans—have concluded that President Biden believes in open borders. And many Americans also believe that the members of the Biden administration who are making immigration policy believe that vetting people at the border is racist. And all of that, in part, in my judgment, is why President Biden’s poll numbers have been on a journey to the center of the Earth.

“I think President Biden has misread the American peopleThe American people do not hate immigration. They support legal immigration. The American people don’t think vetting people at the border is racist. They think it’s prudent.”

. . .

“Most Americans look at our southern border as America’s front door. And they look at the southern border like they look at their own front door: Most Americans lock their front door at night. They don’t lock their front door at night because they hate everybody on the outside. They lock their front door at night because they love the people on the inside, and they want to know who is coming in and who’s going out of their home. They see it as a rule-of-law and a safety issue. And, if I could offer any advice to the Biden administration, I would respectfully suggest that they adopt the view of most Americans.”

Video of Kennedy’s comments is available here.