On Tuesday, Axios broke a story detailing how Customs and Border Protection had arrested four people on the FBI’s terror watch list trying to sneak through the U.S./Mexico border. But the broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) were still playing defense for President Biden that night as ABC’s World News propping up flimsy administration claim “the border is secure,” and NBC Nightly News was refusing to call it a crisis at all.
“The Biden team is blaming its predecessors for the situation at the border, is not talking about the effect of the messaging being sent by the new president about the new border policy, and he is steadfastly refusing to call the situation a crisis,” announced Fox News Channel anchor Bret Baier for Special Report.
White House correspondent Kristin Fisher picked up from there and, at one point, she called attention to the arrest of four alleged Middle East terrorists trying to sneak into the U.S.:
Congressman Katko was among the House Republicans who toured the border on Monday. At the time, he warned of terrorists starting to exploit the southern border. One day later, U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed to Congress that since October, four people have been arrested at the southern border with names matching those on the FBI’s terror watch list. Three from Yemen and one from Serbia.
“Today, the head of U.S. Southern Command declined to say there’s a crisis at the border,” she added, playing a clip of Admiral Craig Faller saying there was a crisis in Central America. She also reported: “[Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas] issued a statement admitting the United States is, ‘on pace to encounter more individuals on the southeast border than we have in the last 20 years.’”
That admission was what the broadcast networks used to frame most of their immigration reports that evening.
CBS Evening News anchor Norah O’Donnell was the only one out of the three to kick off her show with the crisis. “We're going to begin with a humanitarian crisis on the southern border that is growing larger and more dire by the day,” she told viewers.
ABC’s World News Tonight, on the other hand, tried to prop up Mayorkas’s laughable claim that “the border is secure.”
“The Biden administration tonight grappling with a growing surge of young migrants at the southern border, the Homeland Security chief warning about the dire situation, but he says the border is secure,” reported correspondent Marcus Moore.
Meanwhile, NBC Nightly News strained to not call it a crisis. “The migrant surge at the southern border proving to be an early test for the new administration's immigration policies, and leaving President Biden wide open for criticism,” anchor Lester Holt said. “Authorities on pace to encounter more border crossers than in the last 20 years.”
Careful Lester, don’t pull a muscle.
This defense of President Biden over the crisis at the southern border was made possible because of lucrative sponsorships from Febreze on ABC and Swiffer on NBC. Their contact information is linked so you can tell them about the biased news they fund.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
Fox News Channel’s Special Report
March 16, 2021
6:04:08 p.m. EasternBRET BAIER: The Biden team is blaming its predecessors for the situation at the border, is not talking about the effect of the messaging being sent by the new president about the new border policy, and he is steadfastly refusing to call the situation a crisis. White House correspondent Kristin Fisher has that part of the story tonight.
[Cuts to video]
KRISTIN FISHER: Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas insists:
ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS: The border is secure.
FISHER: On the same day he issued a statement admitting the United States is, quote, “on pace to encounter more individuals on the southeast border than we have in the last 20 years.”
The Secretary is blaming the surge on everything but the new administration's immigration policy; from “poverty, high levels of violence and corruption” in Central American countries, to “two damaging hurricanes that hit Honduras,” “the covid-19 pandemic,” and “the prior administration.”
But Republicans like Congressman John Katko say blaming the Trump administration makes no sense.
REP. JOHN KATKO (R-NY): It’s just not a realistic statement. They’re doing this because they’re really floundering for to try to find an explanation as to why they did what they did. There’s really no answer for it.
FISHER: Congressman Katko was among the House Republicans who toured the border on Monday. At the time, he warned of terrorists starting to exploit the southern border. One day later, U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed to Congress that since October, four people have been arrested at the southern border with names matching those on the FBI’s terror watch list. Three from Yemen and one from Serbia.
Today, the head of U.S. Southern Command declined to say there’s a crisis at the border, but he did say this.
ADM. CRAIG FALLER: I would say there is a crisis in Central America in terms of their ability to maintain their democracies and move forward in a way that sustains their personnel.
FISHER: The message to migrants from the Biden administration continues to be --
MAYORKAS: Don't come now. To give us the time to rebuild the system that was entirely dismantled in the prior administration.
FISHER: But even the President's own coordinator for the southern border admits they have a messaging problem.
ROBERTA JACOBSON: Our own message is getting out less than smugglers. We always know that. But we are doing everything we can.
FISHER: But everything does not include a trip to the border from the President himself.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Mr. President, do you have any plans to travel to the southern border, sir?
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Not at the moment.
[Cuts back to live]
FISHER: So, no immediate plans for President Biden to tour the border but he will be traveling to Georgia Friday, along with the vice president to continue selling the American Rescue Plan to the American public, Bret.
BAIER: Kristin fisher live on the North Lawn, Kristen thanks.
