Joe Biden is desperately trying to flip the script on immigration. Once polls revealed that Americans are as worried about immigration as they are about the economy, the White House, which long denied there was a border crisis, suddenly admitted that it was very real—but tried to blame Trump and the GOP for it.
That has been the theme of his immigration narrative for months now, and he's still trying to make it stick.
"Two weeks ago, I did what Republicans in Congress refused to do: I took action to secure our border," Biden said at a White House event marking the 12th anniversary of DACA. "That included restricting unlawful crossings at our southern border, making decisions on asylum more quickly, and so much more. And so far, it’s working."
It's not, and neither is his immigration pivot. According to a recent Monmouth poll, Biden's recent executive order on asylum has failed to shift public opinion in his favor.
More Americans support than oppose President Joe Biden’s recent executive order shutting down asylum claims at the country’s southern border. However, public opinion on whether this move was tough enough on illegal immigration is a mixed bag, according to the Monmouth (“Mon-muth”) University Poll. Biden’s overall job rating remains decidedly negative. On top of that, his rating is lower than public memory of how his predecessor, Donald Trump, performed when he occupied the White House.
“Biden will never be able to satisfy Republicans on border policy,” Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute, said. “The real question is whether he can neutralize this issue among independents without alienating certain Democrats. These initial public opinion results suggest he may have achieved some of that, but it’s not a clear political win by any stretch.”
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Perhaps even more telling than the Monmouth poll is a new Equis poll that shows that Democrats have lost their once-strong advantage among Latino voters on immigration issues. This shift matters because many Latinos, traditionally reliable Democratic voters, are now increasingly identifying as independent, with working-class voters leaning toward the GOP. Axios notes that for the upcoming election, 36.2 million U.S. Latinos are eligible to vote, and they trust Trump more than Biden on the immigration issue. The poll found that 41% trust Trump on immigration compared to 38% for Biden. Carlos Odio of Equis Labs notes there is "great uncertainty in support" for Biden among Latino voters.
The report notes that Biden is "stepping up" his Hispanic outreach in key states such as Arizona, Nevada, and Georgia. Meanwhile, Trump has launched "Latino Americans for Trump," a coalition featuring notable Latino community members nationwide. The Trump campaign has pledged to visit "majority-minority deep-blue areas" often overlooked by presidential candidates, aiming to engage "persuadable black and Hispanic voters." Trump senior advisor Danielle Alvarez contrasts this effort with Biden's approach, claiming Biden's campaign relies on "desperate ads and pandering speeches" to minority voters.
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