Media top headlines September 20
In media news today, a Slate journalist allegedly sent a draft of a story to Fusion GPS about a possible link between Trump and a Russian bank, media pundits get mocked for trying to make news out of 'dud' Capitol Hill rally, and the New York Times comes under fire for describing Iranian nuclear scientist as a 'lover of poetry'
MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle criticized Vice President Kamala Harris Monday for being missing in action during the ongoing crisis on the southern border.
Startling images of thousands of migrants camped under the International Bridge in Del Rio, Texas over the weekend confirmed that the situation on the border remains chaotic. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has determined the situation to be so dire that he's asked President Joe Biden for a federal emergency declaration, saying that as of Saturday there were nearly 16,000 migrants in Del Rio.
"Thousands of families are immobilized in 100-degree heat as their numbers continue to swell as they wait to be processed by the approximately 64 federal agents in the area," Abbott wrote in a letter to the president. "Individuals are camping in squalid conditions and bathing in muddy river water, causing great health concerns."
Biden appointed Harris as his point person on the issue in March, and her critics are wondering what she is doing to stem the influx of migrants that has overwhelmed Customs and Border Patrol agents.
TODAY -- Pictured: Stephanie Ruhle on Monday, March 2, 2020 -- (Photo by: Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
"How about the message from our Vice President?" Ruhle asked Monday. "Where is she? She was supposed to be in charge of all of these migration issues, going to those Northern Triangle countries that's obviously not Haiti."
CBP SHUTS DOWN DEL RIO PORT OF ENTRY, BORDER CHECK POINTS IN RESPONSE TO HAITIAN MIGRANT SURGE
Ruhle reminded viewers that on her trip to Guatemala to spearhead diplomatic outreach on the crisis, Harris told migrants rather pointedly, "do not come."
But "people aren't listening," Ruhle noted.
"Well, we haven't heard a lot from the vice president," NBC News correspondent Julia Ainsley answered. She also noted that much of Harris' work was in Mexico, but that the U.S. is now seeing a "breakdown" in that cooperation.
Considering the overwhelming number of migrants, Ainsley also doubted that the Biden White House could make good on its mantra to process migrants "in a safe, orderly and humane manner."
IMAGES OF HAITIAN MIGRANT SURGE AT DEL RIO SHOW CHAOS UNDER BRIDGE AS NUMBERS SOAR PAST 11,000
It isn't the first time critics have demanded more answers on the border from the administration.
Harris was knocked for not taking a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border for nearly 100 days after her appointment as border czar. She likely made the situation worse in her now infamous interview with NBC's Lester Holt, in which she shrugged off criticism by laughing and saying she "hadn't been to Europe" either. Both liberals and conservatives hit Harris for her dismissive tone.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was on the ground in Texas Monday to assess the situation in Del Rio.
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