In California hearing about the border, House GOP seeks to attack Harris in her home state

House Republicans are in California on Friday for a field hearing, bringing their 2024 election campaign message about Democrats’ handling of the border to Vice President Kamala Harris’ home turf.

The House Judiciary Committee’s hearing “The Biden-Harris Border Crisis: California Perspectives,” takes place in Santee, Calif., a city in eastern San Diego County.

GOP lawmakers view immigration as a winning issue this election season as a California Democrat works to win the White House. They have long attacked Biden for his border policies and have extended that criticism to Harris, particularly since she became the nominee.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Bonsall) will host the hearing, which starts at 9 a.m. at Santee City Hall. Among the witnesses are the mayors of Santee and Vista, as well as the district attorney and undersheriff of Riverside County.

The California stop is one of several hearings planned by House Republicans in the run-up to November.

On Tuesday, the House Judiciary Committee will hold another hearing, on “victim perspectives.” The same day, a Judiciary subcommittee will focus on “noncitizen voting.”

In July, House Republicans — and six Democrats — passed a resolution “strongly condemning the Biden administration and its Border Czar, Kamala Harris’s, failure to secure the United States Border.”

Despite the label, Harris’ immigration policy portfolio was limited to addressing the root causes of migration in certain Latin American countries.

Border arrests have fallen by more than 50% since the Biden administration implemented asylum restrictions in June. Stepped up enforcement by Mexican immigration authorities and summer heat also contributed to lower numbers of arriving migrants.