Cecilia Muñoz
👤 PersonAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
70%, 80%, 85% of the public supported that approach. He also had a theory of the case on how to conduct immigration enforcement. I think it's a fair criticism to say that it took us too long to land on the right approach. There was a lot of trial and error from, say, 2010 when we really started tweaking how enforcement happens to 2014.
70%, 80%, 85% of the public supported that approach. He also had a theory of the case on how to conduct immigration enforcement. I think it's a fair criticism to say that it took us too long to land on the right approach. There was a lot of trial and error from, say, 2010 when we really started tweaking how enforcement happens to 2014.
But essentially, the premise was you have to conduct immigration enforcement, but how you do it matters. And instead of concentrating on people in the interior who have been here for a long time, the priorities should be new arrivals, people who haven't set down roots yet, and folks with serious criminal convictions. And ultimately, that's the set of enforcement choices that makes sense.
But essentially, the premise was you have to conduct immigration enforcement, but how you do it matters. And instead of concentrating on people in the interior who have been here for a long time, the priorities should be new arrivals, people who haven't set down roots yet, and folks with serious criminal convictions. And ultimately, that's the set of enforcement choices that makes sense.
That's also the most humane. But because the removal numbers were high, and the removal numbers were high because there were a lot of new entrants that the Obama administration removed. You know, he got named by my former boss, the deporter-in-chief, and that has stuck.
That's also the most humane. But because the removal numbers were high, and the removal numbers were high because there were a lot of new entrants that the Obama administration removed. You know, he got named by my former boss, the deporter-in-chief, and that has stuck.
And what happened in the advocacy world from that era onward is that folks moved to the left and focused very heavily on immigration enforcement. And so their request to Secretary Clinton when she was running was to move away from immigration enforcement. And she did. She did an interview with Jorge Ramos yesterday.
And what happened in the advocacy world from that era onward is that folks moved to the left and focused very heavily on immigration enforcement. And so their request to Secretary Clinton when she was running was to move away from immigration enforcement. And she did. She did an interview with Jorge Ramos yesterday.
which essentially backed away from the kind of enforcement infrastructure that President Obama had outlined. Immigration enforcement was barely mentioned in her platform at all. They extracted a promise from Joe Biden when he was running to do a moratorium on enforcement, which he did, which he announced, but which ultimately did not withstand legal scrutiny.
which essentially backed away from the kind of enforcement infrastructure that President Obama had outlined. Immigration enforcement was barely mentioned in her platform at all. They extracted a promise from Joe Biden when he was running to do a moratorium on enforcement, which he did, which he announced, but which ultimately did not withstand legal scrutiny.
And the candidates that were running for the Democratic nomination were all asked about decriminalizing border crossings. The entire conversation moved to the left, away from immigration enforcement, and created the impression that Democrats were not serious about imposing order and fairness at the border. And I think that has cost us very, very dearly. It's not a comfortable subject.
And the candidates that were running for the Democratic nomination were all asked about decriminalizing border crossings. The entire conversation moved to the left, away from immigration enforcement, and created the impression that Democrats were not serious about imposing order and fairness at the border. And I think that has cost us very, very dearly. It's not a comfortable subject.
Look, you know, I'm a Latina. I'm an immigration policy expert. This is a very uncomfortable subject, but the Honestly, John, the reason that Frank and I wrote this piece, I feel very strongly. I am not convinced we're going to be able to take our country back from the autocrats if we don't get our arms around this issue.
Look, you know, I'm a Latina. I'm an immigration policy expert. This is a very uncomfortable subject, but the Honestly, John, the reason that Frank and I wrote this piece, I feel very strongly. I am not convinced we're going to be able to take our country back from the autocrats if we don't get our arms around this issue.
What's happening at the border is happening at a scale that the country has not seen before, ever. And it is not a short-term emergency. It is the beginning of what's coming because of climate change and other things.
What's happening at the border is happening at a scale that the country has not seen before, ever. And it is not a short-term emergency. It is the beginning of what's coming because of climate change and other things.
If we do not have a theory of a case for how to do this in an orderly way that allows us to welcome folks, but with conditions, I really fear for our ability to take the country back from the autocrats.
If we do not have a theory of a case for how to do this in an orderly way that allows us to welcome folks, but with conditions, I really fear for our ability to take the country back from the autocrats.
I think a couple of things happened. As I mentioned, they focused very heavily on enforcement and that became kind of the center. The situation of undocumented people, which is work well worth doing, and the risks of immigration enforcement to them became kind of the focal point of the move to the left.
I think a couple of things happened. As I mentioned, they focused very heavily on enforcement and that became kind of the center. The situation of undocumented people, which is work well worth doing, and the risks of immigration enforcement to them became kind of the focal point of the move to the left.