In a moment of candor that feels as rare as an honest Democratic budget proposal, ICE Deputy Director P.J. Lechleitner admitted what every sane person has known for years: President Joe Biden should have tightened border controls a lot earlier. During an NBC News interview, Lechleitner was asked whether Biden’s executive actions, which reduced the surge of illegal immigrants starting in June, should have been implemented sooner. His response? A resounding “Yes, absolutely.”
Lechleitner’s admission is a stunning indictment of Biden’s dithering approach to border security. For over two years, Americans have watched an open-border circus unfold, with millions of illegal immigrants flooding across, straining local resources, and destabilizing communities. Meanwhile, Biden and his Department of Homeland Security treated the crisis like a bad weather forecast—something to acknowledge but not actually prepare for.
Lechleitner didn’t hold back, saying, “The administration should have taken that action earlier, and I think the career people in DHS would have liked that.” He even suggested that nearly everyone in DHS, especially law enforcement, was clamoring for tighter controls while the White House dragged its feet. But hey, when you’re too busy crafting policies to appease open-border advocates and virtue-signaling to coastal elites, who has time to listen to the experts?
For months, border crossings exceeded 10,000 per day, turning towns along the southern border into ground zero for chaos. Communities were left to fend for themselves while Biden’s administration pretended everything was under control. Even Democratic strongholds like New York City eventually buckled under the weight of the influx, with Mayor Eric Adams practically begging the federal government for help.
This is the Democratic playbook in action: ignore a problem until it metastasizes into a full-blown crisis, then scramble to implement half-measures and hope no one notices the damage. Biden’s sudden embrace of tighter border controls is nothing more than political theater designed to salvage his sinking approval ratings.
Under President Trump, the border was secure because leadership prioritized American safety and sovereignty over political correctness. Biden’s failures at the border prove once again why America needs strong, conservative policies—not the reckless pandering of the left. Democrats can keep fumbling the ball, but conservatives will always be there to clean up their messes.
