‘Smartest Thing They Ever Did’: Katie Couric, Jessica Tarlov Admit GOP Leaders Sending Migrants North Was Game Changer

Journalist Katie Couric and Democratic Fox News co-host Jessica Tarlov credited Republican governors for their strategy of transporting illegal immigrants to northern states.

Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and former Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey in 2022 sent illegal immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. Tarlov, on “Next Question with Katie Couric,” described DeSantis’ decision to relocate migrants to Martha’s Vineyard as remarkably intelligent, while Couric shared that her Florida-based friend believed the move effectively raised awareness about immigration issues. (RELATED: ‘Explore Every Action Necessary’: Here’s How Trump Admin, GOP May Change Fight Against Mexican Cartels)

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“On the immigration front, there was a tendency amongst Democrats, and especially Democrats who were discussing the issue, so people who do interviews or are part of the media, to minimize it over the first two and a half years when there were a lot of people coming in here,” Tarlov said. “And I thought that it was a stunt when they started busing migrants … to Martha’s Vineyard. It was the smartest thing they ever did.”

“Well, it’s interesting ’cause I have a friend who lives in Florida, and I said, ‘What did you think of Ron DeSantis and Greg Abbott taking some of these immigrants and moving them to northern states?’ And she said, ‘I thought it was great because nobody really was paying attention before that.’ And I do think that this untold story was the strain on social services and communities, particularly along the border, this huge influx of immigrants was having,” Couric responded. “And I think the mainstream media, however you define that these days, kind of ignored that story to its peril.”

President Joe Biden unveiled an immigration executive order in June after months of claiming there were no actions he could take to mitigate the southern border crisis. The president presided over the highest level of net migration in United States history, according to The New York Times’ analysis of government data.

Biden undertook 296 executive actions on immigration during his first year as president, according to an analysis by the Migration Policy Institute. About 90 of these actions specifically reversed or began the process of unwinding then-former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

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