Locked in tight reelection race, Rep. Yadira Caraveo supports Kamala Harris — then condemns her

U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo backed Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic presidential nomination lower than per week in the past. Then, days later, she supported a Republican-sponsored Home decision “strongly condemning” Harris for the Biden administration’s “failure to safe the US border.”

The vote Thursday was the newest to show heads as Caraveo faces a good reelection race in Colorado’s eighth Congressional District. Whereas different Colorado Democrats defended President Joe Biden and Harris’ immigration report, together with Gov. Jared Polis and U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette — who known as the decision a “bare political stunt” — Careveo stood out.

She argued it was a part of an impartial streak she’s proven as she’s represented a battleground district. However her Republican opponent, state Rep. Gabe Evans, portrayed Caraveo’s vote as a part of an about-face from her previous “open border report.”

Simply 5 different Home Democrats voted with Caraveo on the decision, and all are in shut races in an election cycle by which the difficulty of unlawful immigration has grow to be a prime concern amongst voters. In her first election to Congress in 2022, Caraveo gained within the newly shaped eighth District by lower than a proportion level.

The New York Occasions stories that since Biden took workplace, Customs and Border Safety has recorded greater than 9.6 million migrant encounters nationwide, largely alongside the southern border. These numbers have declined sharply in current months, however the situation has remained a degree of assault for Republicans in opposition to Biden — after which, after he withdrew from the presidential race final Sunday, in opposition to Harris.

When Caraveo was a Colorado state lawmaker, she took a way more progressive stance on immigration. In September 2021, she signed a letter despatched to each Biden and Harris, together with congressional leaders, requesting that Congress “divest from immigration enforcement companies” equivalent to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Safety.

The eighth District takes in elements of Adams, Weld and Larimer counties north of Denver.

Evans mentioned Caraveo “can run however she will be able to’t cover from her open border report.”

“Lower than three years in the past, she known as for defunding ICE and border patrol,” he wrote in an e mail. “You’ll be able to’t get extra open border than that. She’s simply attempting to tug the wool over the eyes of the voters in an election yr.”

In response to a request for an interview, Caraveo’s marketing campaign mentioned Friday afternoon that the freshman congresswoman was “unable to talk on brief discover.” The Denver Put up first requested for remark Thursday afternoon.

“The voters of the Entrance Vary and Northern Colorado despatched me to Congress to be an impartial voice who will stand as much as celebration leaders after they’re mistaken,” Caraveo mentioned in a written assertion. “That’s why I pursued my very own bipartisan immigration reform bundle that will not solely surge assets to the border, however prioritize the wants of our communities.”

The newest try at bipartisan immigration reform was killed by Republican lawmakers earlier this yr amid opposition from former President Donald Trump.

On Thursday, the decision Caraveo backed raised eyebrows additional as a result of it referred to Harris as a “border czar,” a time period Democrats and the White Home have in current days mentioned unfairly overstates Harris’ function in managing border points.