Biden in a bind on the border: 'The politics finally got the better of their policy'

Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley, of Massachusetts, called the Border Patrol “egregious and white supremacist.” Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said it was “worse than what we witnessed in slavery.”

The pair spent years targeting similar criticism at former President Donald Trump for his handling of the border. But this time, they were talking about fellow Democrat President Joe Biden's administration, which continues to deport Haitian migrants and others seeking asylum at the U.S. southern border under a controversial Trump-era public health order.

Trump polarized the politics of immigration in a way that makes Biden’s border bind uniquely difficult. For many in Biden's base, any kind of immigration enforcement action can smack of Trumpism. And for many Republicans, any attempt at reform is tantamount to giving away the country.

Biden is stuck between immigration advocates in his own party on one side and Republicans, who insist he’s still not doing enough to control the border, on the other, leaving the White House politically isolated and with no clear refuge.