A CBS News Poll conducted March 10-13 showed that only half (52%) of Americans approve of President Joe Biden’s handling of immigration which was a hot button issue in the 2020 campaign.
Last week, as stories broke surrounding capacity levels at detention facilities on the border and record numbers of migrant children being held in facilities, immigration became the focal point of the president’s first press conference since taking office. At his news conference, Biden waffled on the issue, referring to steps aimed at increasing capacity and opening overflow facilities before handing the issue off to Vice President Kamala Harris the next day, providing her first major policy role in the administration.
Now new ABC/Ipsos polling from March 26-27 shows 57% of Americans disapprove of the way President Biden is handling the situation with migrants and unaccompanied children arriving at the US-Mexico border. At the same time, public perception of the situation at the border being at crisis-level has risen to 54%, with another 42% of Americans viewing it as a serious problem, but not yet a crisis.
Immigration is a contentious issue, which both Mr. Biden and his predecessor have faced in different ways. Immigration is always a difficult issue to navigate and with the Senate up for grabs in 2022, and the border states of Arizona and Texas picking up House seats in reapportionment, how the new Administration handles this challenge will have a big impact on the political fortunes of both Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris.
