Mayorkas Says Biden Should Have Acted Sooner on Border Security

Former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas appeared to admit that the Biden administration could have and should have enacted more border security measures sooner.

In an interview at the Politico Security Summit on Tuesday, Mayorkas discussed border policies under former President Joe Biden, which became a significant issue ahead of the 2024 presidential election. He said he was largely satisfied with his work under Biden despite some areas of disagreement.

"I was very pleased that in June of 2024, we took executive action that, I thought, made reforms that were sensible and that proved successful," Mayorkas said.

When asked whether Biden acting sooner on border reform could have prevented President Donald Trump from being elected, Mayorkas was less direct. He acknowledged that he would be "better rested" if Biden had.

"I am not in a position to speculate, but I will tell you that I would be far more better rested and less punched," Mayorkas remarked.

Fox News Digital reached out to Biden's office for comment.

Mayorkas faced Republican criticism throughout his tenure after repeatedly claiming the border was "secure" despite record illegal crossings under Biden. More than 7 million people reportedly crossed the border into the U.S. under Biden.

Mayorkas touted the tougher border stance Biden took in June 2024 as a successful and humanitarian response.

"Our tougher border stance in June of ’24 was coupled with an increased focus on providing lawful pathways for people to arrive at the United States outside the hands of smugglers — more secure and more humanitarian. Those two combined — our numbers dropped 70, 75 percent," Mayorkas told Politico.

In 2024, Mayorkas blamed Congress for Biden's delay in acting on the border until five months before the presidential election. He said they would have acted sooner if they knew "irresponsible politics" would prevent congressional action.

"Looking back now in hindsight, in 2020, if we had known that irresponsible politics would have killed what was clearly a meritorious effort and a meritorious result, perhaps we would have taken executive action more rapidly," Mayorkas said.