Elon Musk Criticizes Kamala Harris for Previous Comments on Illegal Immigration

Vice President Kamala Harris has been criticized by Tesla founder and X owner Elon Musk for a past comment where she argued illegal immigrants are not criminals. Musk shared a post that Harris made in April 2017, where she said, "An undocumented immigrant is not a criminal."

Tesla founder and X owner Elon Musk has called out Vice President Kamala Harris for a past comment where she argued illegal immigrants are not criminals. Musk shared a post that Harris made in April 2017, where she said, "An undocumented immigrant is not a criminal."

"Please note that this is an actual statement from Kamala," Musk added.

Elon Musk Criticizes Kamala Harris for Previous Comments on Illegal Immigration

Musk went on to claim that allowing large numbers of migrants has been an electoral strategy for Democrats to gain voters.

"The US Democratic Party as a whole has a massive incentive to bring in and legalize illegal immigrants, as they vote overwhelmingly Democrat," he wrote in a following post. "No grand conspiracy theory is needed. The simple incentive of winning elections explains why they won’t even deport criminals who assault police officers on camera, because that would mean losing those votes."

Elon Musk Criticizes Kamala Harris for Previous Comments on Illegal Immigration

Earlier in August, past comments from Kamala Harris' 2019 campaign website came to light, having linked to a study touting what it called the electoral benefits of not deporting some illegal immigrants, saying that the policy "could provide sizable contributions to the margin of victory in swing states."

Harris’ campaign has appeared to pivot in rhetoric when it comes to the border, taking a harder stance than her 2020 presidential campaign. Her campaign released new ads portraying the former California senator as tough on the border, showing images of the Trump-era border wall, the very same border wall she previously slammed as "un-American."

Elon Musk Criticizes Kamala Harris for Previous Comments on Illegal Immigration

"Dreamers should not be pitted against their families or traded away like some commodity in exchange for a un-American, $25 billion wall," she wrote in 2018.

The Trump campaign has called out Harris’ campaign for trying to portray her as tough on the border.

Elon Musk Criticizes Kamala Harris for Previous Comments on Illegal Immigration

"How much longer will the mainstream media allow Kamala Harris to hide and use staff to speak on her behalf?" Karoline Leavitt, national press secretary for the Trump campaign, said in a statement. "It’s DAY 37 of ZERO interviews and Kamala’s anonymous campaign sources are now claiming she supports President Trump’s border wall — this is a preposterous and false claim."

Musk's criticism of Harris comes as the Biden administration faces growing criticism over its handling of the southern border. The number of illegal crossings has surged in recent months, and the administration has been accused of releasing migrants into the country without properly vetting them.

Harris, who was tasked with leading the administration's efforts to address the root causes of migration, has been criticized for her lack of visibility on the issue. She has only visited the border once since taking office, and she has not held a press conference on the issue in months.

Musk's criticism of Harris is likely to further damage her already low approval ratings. A recent poll found that only 38% of Americans approve of the job she is doing as vice president.