Michael Gabriel Hernandez
25 March 2021•Update: 25 March 2021
By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden said on Thursday he expects to run in 2024, further defending his immigration policies as the country grapples with a dramatic spike in migrant arrivals at its southern border.
Biden told reporters during his first news conference since coming to office in January that he "fully" expects Vice President Kamala Harris would be his running mate should he run again, describing her as "a great partner."
Biden will be 81 entering 2024.
The president devoted much of his more than one-hour news conference to immigration policies, maintaining the surge is on par with what was seen under former US President Donald Trump.
He further rejected suggestions that the uptick is due to his public perception as a "nice guy," and attributed much of the increase to seasonal cycles in immigration.
"Does anybody suggest that there was a 31% increase under Trump because he was a nice guy, and he was doing good things at the border?" Biden asked, apparently rhetorically. "That’s not the reason they’re coming. The reason they’re coming is that it’s the time they can travel with the least likelihood of dying on the way because of the heat in the desert."
The US has been urging migrants not to come as it continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic. The southern and northern borders have been closed to all non-essential travel as part of the effort to contain the virus' spread.
In order to combat the pandemic, the Biden administration has dramatically increased the number of vaccine doses that have been sent to state authorities. Over 133,000,000 doses have been administered since the rollout began, and Biden surpassed his goal to put 100,000 shots into arms within his first 100 days in just over half that time.
Acknowledging that he hit the milestone on day 58 in office, Biden increased his 100-day goal to 200,000,000 shots.
"I know it's ambitious, twice our original goal, but no other country in the world has even come close to what we are doing," he said. "I believe we can do it."
In order to combat the pandemic, the Biden administration has dramatically increased the number of vaccine doses that have been sent to state authorities. Over 133,000,000 doses have been administered since the rollout began, and Biden surpassed his goal to put 100,000 shots into arms within his first 100 days in just over half that time.
"This makes Jim Crow look like Jim Eagle," he said, referring to laws enacted in the late 1800s and early 1900s intended to disenfranchise Blacks after the US formally abolished slavery. "This is gigantic, what they’re trying to do, and it cannot be sustained.”
He further said Senate Democrats should revise a procedural hurdle in the Senate requiring 60 votes for legislation to pass the chamber, saying the filibuster is "being abused in a gigantic way."
The comments come as Biden seeks to make headway on his agenda, particularly enacting new gun control laws in the wake of two deadly mass shootings in as many weeks.
Legislative efforts to pass two bills in the Senate that already cleared the House of Representatives have been significantly challenged by the super-majority currently in place.
Biden said he would favor a return to what is known as the speaking filibuster, which allows a senator to speak as long as they wish on a topic of their choosing to stymy a bill's passage.
Under those rules from 1917-1971 there were just 58 attempts to break a filibuster, a number that was far eclipsed in 2020 alone when five-times that amount was tallied, Biden said.
"It used to be that you had to stand there and talk, and talk and talk until you collapsed. And guess what? People got tired of talking and tired of collapsing. Filibusters broke down and we were able to break the filibuster, get a quorum, and vote," he said. "So I strongly support moving in that direction."
