Watch: Biden and Harris Refuse to Clap as Trump Explains How He's Going to Fix Their Mess
Former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris refused to clap Monday when President Donald Trump laid out his plans to address the crisis at the southern border in his inaugural address.
Trump said among his first actions would be to sign an executive order declaring a national emergency at the border.
Many in the room stood and applauded, while Biden and Harris, the former border czar, remained in their seats and did not clap.
To applaud would have been an acknowledgment that they allowed over 10 million people to enter the country illegally, including the known so-called gotaways versus 1.8 million total border encounters under Trump.
Trump pledged Monday, “All illegal entry will immediately be halted, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came.”
“We will reinstate my ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy. I will end the practice of catch and release,” the president said. “And I will send troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our country.”
BREAKING: President Donald Trump announces day one executive orders, including deploying the military to the border
– National emergency declaration at the southern border
– Halting “all illegal entry”
– Remain-in-Mexico reinstated
– Catch-and-release ended
– Troops heading to… pic.twitter.com/YbsiIGdx3X— TV News Now (@TVNewsNow) January 20, 2025
Trump further stated, “Under the orders I sign today, we will also be designating the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.”
“And by invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, I will direct our government to use the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eliminate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks bringing devastating crime to U.S. soil, including our cities and inner cities,” the president said.
Immigration was a top campaign issue in the 2024 election, according to NBC News exit polling.
A reflection of that was seen in the passage of the Laken Riley Act in the House and its advancement in the Senate, clearing a filibuster with bipartisan support, meaning it should eventually pass easily in that chamber.
The bill is named for 22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who was brutally murdered by an illegal immigrant while out for a jog in Athens in February of last year.
It requires the Department of Homeland Security to take into custody illegal aliens who commit theft and other crimes.
Venezuelan Jose Ibarra, who was convicted in November of murdering Riley, had previously been cited for shoplifting by the Athens Police Department, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement was not informed.
Democratic Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Ruben Gallego of Arizona both co-sponsored the Laken Riley Act along with over 50 Republicans. GOP Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama introduced the bill in the Senate.
“If you’re here illegally and you’re committing crimes, I don’t know why anybody thinks that it’s controversial that they all need to go,” Fetterman told Fox News earlier this month.
NEW: John Fetterman says if Democrats can’t get 7 votes in the Senate to pass the Laken Riley Act, then “that’s the reason why we lost.”
“If you’re here illegally and you’re committing crimes, I don’t know why anybody thinks that it’s controversial, that they all need to go.” pic.twitter.com/e0tDEK72uO
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) January 8, 2025
Illegal border crossings have been lower since June when Biden issued executive orders announcing new enforcement measures, which obviously he could have done all along.
Biden only changed course when he saw it was hurting his and his fellow Democrats’ election chances.
In December, federal authorities encountered just over 96,000 people at the border versus more than 300,000 in December 2023.
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