Sen. Marsha Blackburn describes weekend trip to U.S.-Mexico border

JACKSON, Tenn. — Sen. Marsha Blackburn visited the U.S.-Mexico border over the weekend to highlight what she calls a “crisis” that is reaching Tennessee.

Sen. Blackburn shared video Tuesday of that weekend trip, where she spoke with law enforcement officers who are trying to secure it.

“Until our borders are secure, every town will be a border town and every state a border state,” Sen. Blackburn said.

In a meeting with reporters Tuesday, she called the situation a “crisis,” something the Biden administration has yet to characterize it as.

On Monday, Vice President Kamala Harris called it a “challenging situation.”

“We’ve got to treat this issue in a way that is reflective of our values as Americans and do it in a way that is fair and is humane,” Vice President Harris said. “But we have to meet the moment and there’s a lot of work going into that.”

Sen. Blackburn said she has been working with the Biden administration to help solve the issue. She wants policies in place to do three things.

First, continue building the border wall.

“Law enforcement and our border patrol have told us: having a wall, a physical wall, helps them,” Sen. Blackburn said.

In addition, she wants policies to provide more surveillance and reinstate the “remain in Mexico” policy.

“The cartels are very sophisticated. They have established outposts and lookouts on the tops of these mountains,” she said. “That helps them. Because again, the cartels have figured this out.”

On Monday, senior Biden administration officials said they are traveling to Mexico and Guatemala to meet with leaders, and President Biden said he will visit the border “at some point.”