Harris to drum up tough on the border message in Arizona

Vice President Harris will call for tougher border security measures as part of her campaign stop in Douglas, Ariz., while again hitting former President Trump for his role in scuttling a bipartisan border deal.

In her first major border speech as the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris plans to tout her credentials battling transnational crime as attorney general of California, according to a senior campaign official.

She will lean into border security, looking to tap into a formula that’s worked well for Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), who is running for the state’s open Senate seat.

“[Hispanics in Arizona] like what Gallego says, and I think it’s going to work for her. How long, I don’t know, right? But she’s going to those states, like Arizona, where you’re going to find the people there — nationally, she may not, it may not work 100 percent for her — but she’s going to get good reviews from Hispanics in Arizona,” said Moses Mercado, a Democratic strategist.

Gallego is running far ahead of GOP Senate nominee Kari Lake in most polls, while Harris is at best neck and neck with Trump in Arizona.

The focus on border security, rather than on improving the immigration system, is a calculated risk for Harris.

While broad majorities of Hispanic voters have historically supported comprehensive immigration reform, voters in border states are generally more receptive to border security proposals.

And Harris is expected to focus her border comments on transnational crime, in part because unauthorized border crossings are at their lowest point since President Biden took office.

“It’s a powerful issue against Democrats, no doubt, but [Republicans are] not running on it right now in [border] states, and I think it’s because people aren’t seeing it. If you’re living in McAllen, Texas or Brownsville, is it an issue? Yes. Is it a problem right now? They don’t see it. They were seeing it before, but they’re not seeing it now,” Mercado said.

The relative lull in border crossings has fueled other culture war issues but has also provided a space for Democrats such as Harris and Gallego to bolster their border enforcement credentials without alienating immigration advocates.

And Harris is expected to again hammer Trump with his role in derailing the Senate border deal that would have gutted asylum, and which both advocacy groups and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus vehemently opposed.

The senior campaign official said in an email that Harris plans to say, “The American people deserve a President who cares more about border security than playing political games.”

While Harris’s support for that deal could be a liability on her left flank, it has proven an effective tool to portray Trump as opportunistic, even on his signature issue.

“It’s either, ‘We’re going to get tough on the border, is one side of it, we’re going to try to do immigration right.’ But you know, whatever the nuances is, the alternative ‘is we’re deporting everybody if we win,’” Mercado said.

“So where do the groups go? It’s hard for them to tell their people, ‘Yeah, we’re pissed at Gallego and the vice president, so let’s go vote for the guy that’s going to deport us all.’”