Conservative adviser Andi Bottner said in an interview that aired Thursday on “What America’s Thinking” that immigration as a policy topic has been “weaponized” by both parties.
“I don’t think any American would say I’m against protecting our border, protecting our people,” Bottner, a senior adviser at the Independent Women’s Forum, told Hill.TV’s Krystal Ball on Wednesday. “I think that’s where politics has done a disservice to us, because we all can agree that we need to have more assistance down there. We need to regulate those coming in a safe manner, a humane manner, and I think ultimately that’s what this president wants to do.”
“It’s just become such a political hot potato and a slogan that it’s almost been weaponized by both sides,” she continued.
Lawmakers are scrambling to reach a deal on border security in an effort to avert another government shutdown.
The U.S. went through its longest-ever government shutdown in December and January after the White House and congressional Democrats were unable to reach a deal on funding that included President Trump’s long-promised border wall. Democrats have offered funding for national security that does not include a wall.
“I think most people, and Democrats and Republicans in the past, have voted for increased security along our border,” Bottner said.
“I think what’s happened since 2016, a campaign slogan has become so politicized, and so there’s a lot of negative,” she said. “When people hear a wall, if they don’t like this president, they’re going to say, ‘I’m against the wall.'”
— Julia Manchester
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