A growing number of Democrat members of of President Barack Obama's recent tour is urging the ir commander-in-chief to make a stop at the border where thousands of undocumented immigrants from Central America have crossed over and are being held in detention centers, Buzzfeed reported. Among the most vocal is representative Henry Cuellar, who called out Obama Wednesday morning on MSNBC. Cuellar would be the first from the Democrats who have publicly criticized the president from not making the border trip, and at one point insisting that Obama was just 500 miles away from the border.
Representative Filemon Vela, who represents the border town of Brownsville, told BuzzFeed that it was a good idea for Obama to pay a visit real soon. Vela, who also toured the facilities where many of the immigrants, of which majority are minors, have been holed up said, "It's more about seeing the kids and what they are experience than the facilities themselves. We've all experienced difficult things in life: either a family member or friend dying or having a serious illness. I've experienced those things as well and aside from those things, I have not in my life seen anything worse ... It's the human element, that not just president, but anyone who is going to be involved in making policy with respect to this crisis ... should see."
However, Obama has issued a warning to Congress to not bog down his plans on dealing with the border crisis with partisan wrangling of the issue. Buzzfeed noted that Obama has a $3.7 billion plan to increase enforcement of immigration policies and is currently awaiting approval from Capitol Hill.
"There's nothing that is taking place down there that I am not intimately aware of and briefed on. This isn't theater. This is a problem. I'm not interested in photo ops; I'm interested in solving a problem. And those who say I should visit the border, when you ask them what should we be doing they're giving us suggestions that are embodied in legislation that I've already sent to Congress."
