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Vice President Kamala Harris’ incoming communications director Jamal Simmons hadn’t even made it to his first day on the job but when he was pressured to apologize Friday for tweets he posted in November 2010 about siccing Immigration and Customs Enforcement on “undocumented people.”
The newly resurfaced tweets sparked quick backlash from some progressives—criticism that solely intensified when former Trump adviser Stephen Miller, infamous because the architect of the Trump administration’s harshest immigration insurance policies, chimed in on Twitter to say he agreed with Simmons’ 2010 tweet and “there have to be deportation” for many who “break into our nation.”
President Joe Biden has put Harris in control of managing the crushing surge in migrants on the border, and plenty of reacted to Simmons’ years-old tweets by questioning whether or not he’s the fitting individual to be the face of that effort. His appointment was introduced Thursday.
After the announcement, three tweets resurfaced by which Simmons requested, “Can somebody clarify why ICE isn't selecting them up?” after seeing an undocumented lawyer and undocumented protester talking on MSNBC. He then responded to a different Twitter person saying he was not “suggesting ICE shld choose them up. Simply appears odd u can go on TV & admit breaking legislation & not be arrested.”
Simmons later tried to brush off the criticism about his remarks as “miserable,” tweeting, “For the document, I’ve by no means advocated for, nor believed that Dreamers ought to be focused by ICE brokers. I’ve been for DACA + complete immigration reform for years. I’ve been for DACA + complete immigration reform for years. Frankly, it’s miserable ppl can overlook about each different factor I've mentioned in public on this bc of dangerous tweets.”
In an announcement to CNN, Simmons mentioned, “Typically I've been sarcastic, unclear, or simply plainly missed the mark. I sincerely apologize for offending those that care as a lot as I do about making America one of the best, multi-ethnic, numerous democracy it may be.”
Harris has confronted criticism for failing to curb or cope with a crush of migrants on the border who face deteriorating detention circumstances amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Although Biden promised to largely reverse Donald Trump’s immigration insurance policies, his administration has continued to help the implementation of Title 42, a public well being rule first enforced by Trump that turns again households and forces them to stay in Mexico. Harris put it bluntly in a June 2021 speech in Guatemala: “Don’t come. Don't come.”
The tweets about immigration aren’t Simmons’ solely remarks receiving consideration, nonetheless. He has spoken in favor of third-rail issues like waterboarding and Israeli settlements, additional eliciting progressive criticism on Twitter.
He wrote that the CIA’s use of waterboarding was acceptable to “shield the nation” even when it “could have been unlawful.”
Extra not too long ago, in 2020, he wrote: “Intent/motive matter. #GWBush let CIA water board ppl and even tho we didn’t prefer it and should have been unlawful he was not impeached bc he was doing it to guard the nation. If Bush waterboarded ppl to get somebody to purchase his TX ranch that will be totally different.”
He wrote in 2009, “Went to a settlement outdoors Tel Aviv. Wonderful how blended in Jewish and Arab cities are.” Israeli settlements have been extensively condemned within the years since as impinging on Palestinian sovereignty, together with by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2017.