Vice President Kamala Harris was heavily criticized for her answers during an interview on CBS's 60 Minutes that aired Monday night.
During the sit-down, journalist Bill Whitaker asked Harris several questions about immigration policies, which the vice president frequently dodged.
In one exchange, Whitaker asked about the Biden-Harris administration's reversal on border security policy only after a record number of illegal immigrants had entered the country. He particularly noted immigration policy from the first years of the administration.
“There was a historic flood of undocumented immigrants coming across the border the first three years of your administration,” Whitaker said . “As a matter of fact, arrivals quadrupled from the last year of President Trump. Was it a mistake to loosen the immigration policies as much as you did?”
“It's a long-standing problem, and solutions are at hand. And from Day One, literally, we have been offering solutions,” Harris answered.
“What I was asking was, was it a mistake to kind of allow that flood to happen in the first place?” Whitaker replied.
“I think the policies that we have been proposing are about fixing a problem, not promoting a problem,” Harris said.
“OK, but the numbers did quadruple,” Whitaker affirmed.
“And the numbers today — because of what we have done, we have cut the flow of illegal immigration by half,” the vice president replied. “We have cut the flow of fentanyl by half, but we need Congress to be able to act to actually fix the problem.”
Harris's replies did not answer Whitaker's questions, and many people took note. Social media platforms were rife with comments mocking Harris's comments for what many considered a flubbed response.
Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX) commented on X on Harris's answer to the immigration question.
"WATCH: 60 Minutes grills Kamala on why the Biden admin waited 3 years to act on illegal crossings," Hunt posted . "Harris dodges, blames Trump (shocker), and pivots to an amnesty bill, but never explains the 3-year delay during record chaos."
"And DON'T forget: 1.9M gotaways," Hunt added.
Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin also mentioned that Harris never answered Whitaker's question. He criticized her response and provided statistics highlighting the immigration failures that have happened since Harris has been in office.
"Harris never actually answers the question as to why they waited 3 years to attempt to stop the chaos at the executive level," Melugin posted . "And a reminder about those record setting numbers, they do not include the more than 1.9 million known gotaways who were recorded entering the U.S. without apprehension. Gotaways under Biden/Harris in 3 years were higher than the prior decade of Trump + Obama — combined and there were times when entire chunks of the border were left completely unmanned to focus resources on processing/mass catch & release instead."
Editor and journalist Ramesh Ponnuru also commented about Harris's interview.
"On 60 Minutes, Whitaker asks three times if it was a mistake for the administration to loosen border policy as much as it did," Ponnuru posted . "No answer from Harris."
Political commentator and talk show host Jesse Watters mentioned the interview during a segment on his show Jesse Watters Primetime.
"Kamala Harris's media blitz is already bombing. 60 Minutes just grilled her on immigration. She had nothing," Watters said.
Former congressional candidate Fred Von Canon was also critical of Harris's interview. He commended Whitaker for his professionalism and "real questions." He claimed the vice president's flubbed responses were indicative of why former President Donald Trump was going to win the election.
"Bill Whitaker with 60 Minutes is the only journalist who has asked Harris or Walz any real questions," Von Canon posted on X. "Not gotcha questions; just real ones. In so doing, he has made it clear how vacuous both Harris and Walz are. Have said this for months: Trump will win and it won't be close."
Journalist Andy Ngo claimed the vice president was temperamental in her response to Whitaker's questions on immigration, saying he sensed hostility from Harris.
"In a rare sit-down interview, Kamala Harris is asked by 60 Minutes' Bill Whitaker why her administration with Biden opened the floodgates of mass migration by undoing the policies the Trump admin had in place," Ngo posted on X. "Harris becomes hostile in the interview."
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There were many other similar posts on social media.
Harris's interview on 60 Minutes is part of her campaign's new strategy to increase media appearances during the last weeks before the Nov. 5 election. Harris will continue her media blitz on Tuesday with scheduled appearances on The View, The Howard Stern Show, and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
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