(ProsperNews.net) – Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance defended his remarks on Thursday, in which he referred to Haitian migrants entering the U.S. through Biden administration programs as “illegal aliens,” amid ongoing debates over immigration policies. Vance was questioned at a campaign event about why he used the term “illegal aliens” for migrants who entered the U.S. through the parole processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV) or who are protected from deportation through Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
Vance argued that the Biden administration’s use of these programs does not legitimize the migrants’ status. “The media loves to say that the Haitian migrants — hundreds of thousands of them, by the way, 20,000 in Springfield, but hundreds of thousands of them all across the country — they are here legally,” Vance said. He criticized Vice President Kamala Harris, saying, “Kamala Harris used two separate programs, mass parole and Temporary Protected Status. She used two programs to wave a wand and to say, we’re not going to deport those people here. Well, if Kamala Harris waves the wand illegally and says these people are now here legally, I’m still going to call them an illegal alien.”
The CHNV parole programs, expanded by the Department of Homeland Security in 2023, allow up to 30,000 migrants per month from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela if they are vetted and have a supporter in the U.S. The Biden administration also redesignated and extended TPS for Haiti, which protects thousands of Haitians from deportation and provides work permits.
Republicans have strongly opposed these policies, arguing that the Biden administration’s use of parole programs violates immigration laws, which allow parole only on a “case by case” basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. GOP lawmakers contend that mass use of parole undermines these restrictions, and several Republican-led states sued over the CHNV program, though they have lost in court.
Vance argued that the Biden administration’s approach is fundamentally illegal. “What is fundamentally illegal is for Kamala Harris to say we’re going to grant parole not on a case by case basis, but to millions of illegal aliens who are coming into this country. That does not magically make them legal,” he stated.
Vance also criticized the broad use of TPS, a program that the Trump administration had previously attempted to end for several nationalities, including Haitians. He described TPS as essentially a “government edict saying that you’re not allowed to deport people anymore.”
The debate over immigration policy has extended beyond the southern border, where migrant numbers have recently declined following an executive order by President Biden that restricted arrivals. However, former President Trump has pledged to take a tougher stance if elected, stating he would “immediately end the migrant invasion of America.” He outlined plans to stop all migrant flights, end illegal entries, terminate the CBP One app, revoke deportation immunity, suspend refugee resettlement, and send what he called “Kamala’s illegal migrants” back to their home countries.
The Harris campaign did not respond to requests for comment on Vance’s remarks. The broader debate underscores the political divisions over immigration policy as the 2024 election approaches, with each side continuing to clash over how to handle the influx of migrants and the use of executive powers to shape immigration enforcement.
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