GOP reps say Biden admin downplaying border crisis only 'empowers bad actors'

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Republican members of the House of Representatives blasted the Biden administration for downplaying the crisis at the southern border, saying the decision "empowers bad actors."

Rep. Young Kim of California -- one of the first Korean women to serve in Congress -- responded to a tweet from fellow Californian, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, which included a clip of Vice President Harris’ Tuesday interview with NBC News where she falsely claimed to have traveled to the border.

Kim blasted the Biden administration’s response to the border crisis, saying the administration downplaying it only serves to empower "bad actors."

"Downplaying the border crisis only empowers bad actors," Kim wrote. "The Biden administration's policies have strained our resources on the border, endangered migrants, undermined legal immigration [and] do nothing to secure our border."

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"We can't fix the problem if we don't acknowledge it," she added.

Iowa's Rep. Ashley Hinson, also took aim at Harris in a tweet, giving her own fact check of the vice president’s claim to have visited the border, pointing out she "has NOT been to the border."

"This is an insult to brave law enforcement officers who are on the ground today [and] everyday combating cartels [and] drug smugglers [with] limited resources," Hinson wrote. "She has to stop shirking responsibility [and] finally address the border crisis."

The vice-chairman of the House Republican Conference, Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisana, also got a shot in, eviscerating Harris as being more interested in gunning for President Biden’s job than tackling the border crisis.

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"Is it any wonder why the #BidenBorderCrisis rages on? The Administration's own Border Czar is more interested in running for President than solving the border problem," wrote Johnson.

Multiple other Republicans lambasted the vice president, with Rep. Barry Moore, of Alabama, saying it is time for Harris to "secure" the southern border.

The interview came after the vice president’s visit to Guatemala, where her staff said the "main drivers" of illegal immigration were the economy and climate after the Guatemalan president blamed the U.S. for the surge.

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"I – at some point – you know – we are going to the border. We've been to the border," Harris replied. "So this whole – this whole – this whole thing about the border. We've been to the border. We've been to the border." 

Later on Tuesday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki defended Harris' comments, saying "as vice president, she does speak for the actions of the people in the administration she certainly helps oversee."

Neither the White House nor the vice president’s office immediately responded to Fox News’ request for comment.