During the buildup to President Trump’s Oval Office speech on Tuesday evening regarding security at the country’s southern border, MSNBC anchor Hallie Jackson used an interview with Vice President Mike Pence as an opportunity to ask him an obviously bizarre question.
Jackson asked Pence about “the underlying argument for being able to build this barrier and the shutdown” when documents showed that during a six-month period, six times as many immigrants came into the nation on the northern border than those who arrived from Mexico.
“Yet you’re not talking about a wall or barrier with Canada,” she stated. “What’s the difference?”
The Republican official replied (at 2:20 in the video above):
Well, the difference is, is that we’re now seeing 60,000 people a month attempt to come into our country illegally on the southern border.
They’re predominantly families and unaccompanied children for the first time ever.
“Will a wall stop them?” Jackson asked.
“With regard to terrorists,” Pence continued, “we’ve seen more than four thousand known or suspected terrorists attempt to come to our country through various means, but on the southern border -- .”
“But let me stop you on that number,” the MSNBC host interrupted, “because it is a misleading claim that’s been fact-checked, as I believe you’re aware because that number is for all ports of entry, including airports.”
Undaunted, the vice president returned to the point he was making.
“Well -- and that’s what I was saying -- it is from all ports of entry,” he noted, “but on the southern border, last year alone, three thousand special interest aliens were apprehended trying to come into our country.”
Pence then explained that he was describing “individuals whose travel patterns or backgrounds represent the need for additional screening, and represent a potential security threat to the United States of America.”
“They’re two different categories, and they often get conflated,” he added.
“But remember also,” Pence continued, that “we apprehended seventeen thousand people with criminal records attempting to come into this country on the southern border last year alone.”
The vice president then stated that all of this information “is in the public domain. The president will speak about this crisis on our southern border.”
The GOP official then noted:
When you have even the Washington Post saying that we have a bona fide emergency on our southern border over this weekend -- it’s time for Congress to act.
It’s time for the Democrats in Congress to come to the table and start negotiating, not just to end this partial government shutdown, but to address what is a genuine humanitarian and security crisis on our southern border.
However, the question about the nation’s border countries wasn’t the only odd query Jackson asked.
Referring to the partial federal government shutdown, she began the interview by asserting: “There are a lot of people out of work right now. The president said that he thinks people on the receiving end of the shutdown should ‘make adjustments.’ So what, specifically, do you think these folks should do to adjust?”
“Should people skip utility bills?” Jackson asked. “Should they buy fewer groceries?”
Pence wasn’t flustered by her bizarre take on the situation.
“I think the president is sensitive and grateful for all the public servants across this government who make sacrifices every day to serve the American people,” he stated, “and especially the 800,000 federal workers that will be impacted.”
“So how should they adjust?” the MSNBC host asked again.
“I’m proud to say that the president has directed -- unlike past administrations -- this president has directed our administration to mitigate the impact of the shutdown,” Pence replied.
“We found a way to keep the parks open and maintained for the American people,” the vice president noted. “We also ensured yesterday that tax refunds will go out as planned.”
“There’s no reason why those paychecks shouldn’t go out on schedule on Friday,” he added. ”Democrats broke off the negotiations and, quite frankly, we could resolve these issues in a matter of hours.”
“The American people expect us to do our work,” Pence stated.
