EAGLE PASS, Texas, U.S.A. – U.S. President Joe Biden and likely Republican contender Donald Trump are heading to the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas on Thursday, an indication of how important immigration has become to the 2024 election and how much both candidates want to use it to their advantage.
Each has chosen an optimal place to highlight their respective arguments.
Biden, who wants to highlight how Republicans derailed a bipartisan border security deal on Trump’s orders, will go to the Rio Grande Valley city of Brownsville. For nine years, this was the busiest corridor for unauthorized crossings, but these have been drastically reduced there in recent months.
For his part, Trump wants to continue his attacks on Biden and keep up his fiery rhetoric after claiming that migrants poison the blood of Americans. He will do so from Eagle Pass, about 325 miles (523 kilometers) northwest of Brownsville, in the corridor that currently has the highest number of crossings. Trump is expected to speak at a state park that has become a Republican symbol of defiance against immigration practices by the federal government.
In other words, this divisive moment could not be more divided, with each candidate asking voters to side with his or her approach to migration.
Among voters, concerns about the deteriorating immigration system are growing on both sides of the political spectrum, which could be especially problematic for Biden.