Biden: 'My intention' is to visit the Southern border

President Joe Biden intends to visit the southern U.S. border, he said Wednesday, following months of insistence from his political opponents that he make the trip.

“That’s my intention,” Biden said, responding to a question from reporters about whether he’d go to the border. “We’re working out the details now.”

The president is scheduled to visit Mexico City next week for a summit with other North American leaders. The news of Biden’s border visit was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Republicans have long insisted that Biden see the border with Mexico firsthand — one of many criticisms they’ve maintained over the administration’s border policy. GOP leaders, including Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), have held press conferences criticizing Biden from the border itself, highlighting what they’ve labeled as an immigration crisis.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in November called McCarthy’s border visit a “political stunt.”

The Biden administration faced additional scrutiny for its immigration policies last month under the expected expiration of Title 42, a mechanism used by the Biden and Trump administrations to prevent the entry of millions of migrants under Covid-era rules. Critics have argued the federal government is not prepared for the influx of migrants expected when Title 42 is lifted, as authorities will no longer be able to turn migrants away without an asylum hearing.

The Supreme Court ruled in December that Title 42 can stay in place for now, with oral arguments in the case expected in February or March.