CNN's Don Lemon has testy exchange with Texas Republican over border crisis: 'You said a lot of things'

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CNN's Don Lemon has testy exchange with Texas Republican over border crisis: 'You said a lot of things'

Former Texas GOP Congressman Will Hurd joined the hosts of "CNN This Morning" to discuss the border crisis ahead of Title 42's end and called on President Biden to fire DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

CNN hosts Don Lemon and Kaitlan Collins clashed with former Republican lawmaker Will Hurd on Monday while discussing the border crisis and the end to Title 42.

Hurd, who represented a Texas border district in Congress, said President Biden's border policy was worse than former President Trump's and emphasized Trump's policies were "terrible." 

"I can make an argument that President Biden’s policies are more inhumane than Donald Trump's, and Donald Trump's was terrible, it was the worst of any presidents before him. Because you’re going to have thousands of people sleeping on the streets of El Paso and starting this week it’s probably going to be below 20 degrees. That’s an inhumane policy and they need to do more," the former representative said. 

Hurd also suggested Biden get rid of border security officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, because of a lack of "credibility." Lemon interrupted Hurd, saying "we want to respond" to "a lot of things" the guest had just said and ask some more questions. 

CNN hosts Kaitlan Collins and Don Lemon discuss the southern border with former GOP lawmaker Will Hurd. (Screenshot/CNN/CNNThisMorning)

NEWSOM SAYS CALIFORNIA ABOUT TO ‘BREAK’ AMID FLOOD OF ILLEGAL MIGRANTS WHEN TITLE 42 EXPIRES

Collins followed up and asked him to confirm his comments about needing to fire Mayorkas. 

"Yes, of course," Hurd said. "This crisis has escalated under him. There’s other ways to do expedited removal. You also have a Title 8 authority, and what a new secretary of Homeland Security should be coming in saying ‘Listen, we’re going to use Title 8 authority to the same level that we’re using Title 42.’"

Lemon then followed up on Hurd's claim that Biden's policies were worse than Trump's.

"You said that, you know, the Trump administration, that the policies were horrible. You think the Biden administration is worse. You’re putting it on, basically on this administration, you said a lot about it. And the buck does stop with the president. But here’s a question, both Republicans and Democrats have been dealing with this issue for a long time. Republicans have blocked a lot of legislation when it comes to border security. So shouldn’t it be the Congress and lawmakers? Shouldn’t some of the onus be to them to come together and work to fix this problem instead of using it as a political back and forth and using immigrants as political pawns?" Lemon asked. 

Migrants encountered at the southern border in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Oct. 19, 2022. (Fox News)

EL PASO HIT BY 255% INCREASE IN MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AS TITLE 42'S END NEARS

Hurd agreed and said politicians would rather use immigration as a political bludgeon against each other instead of solving the issue. 

Title 42, a Trump-era border rule that has been used since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to expel migrants, is set to expire on Wednesday. 

President Biden gestures while boarding Air Force One at Nantucket Memorial Airport in Massachusetts, Nov. 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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The White House has insisted they have been preparing for the end of Title 42 but have not clarified how they had been preparing.

"We have been and continue to plan for its expiration next week. That's point one," National Security Council strategic communications coordinator John Kirby told reporters on Friday. "Point two … is that we are making appropriate preparations for that expiration, and you will hear more from us, specifically [the Department of Homeland Security], next week about what those preparations are going to be looking like."