Joe Biden and Donald Trump will both travel to the US-Mexico border on Thursday, locked in a high-stakes political duel on an issue that could ultimately decide the US presidential election.
That border was crossed last year by 2.5 million undocumented migrants, an influx that has overwhelmed processing facilities and pushed social services in major American cities to the brink.
The day provides an opportunity for Mr Biden to try to convince voters he is serious about immigration, while Mr Trump’s own trip is yet another chance to shine a spotlight on an issue that has been the central focus of his political career.
November’s general election is expected to be a Biden-Trump rematch, although the two candidates have not secured their respective parties’ nomination quite yet.
Mr Trump is visiting Eagle Pass, the Texas border town where Republican Governor Greg Abbott has defied the Biden White House by using state National Guard soldiers to detain undocumented migrants and erect border barricades, including razor-wire fences that critics say are inhumane.
The former president is likely to tout these kind of aggressive measures and cite them as part of the reason why border crossings have dropped in Texas recently, while spiking in Arizona and California – states with Democratic governors.
The White House only announced Mr Biden’s own visit to Brownsville, Texas, a few days ago and the president’s trip is another indication that Democrats are scrambling to respond to an area of perceived weakness.
More than 6.3 million migrants have been detained crossing into the US illegally during Mr Biden’s time in office – a higher number than under previous presidencies – though experts say the reasons for the spike are complex, with some factors pre-dating his government.
“He needs to get down there, show his face, and get the pulse of what’s happening,” says Jaime Dominguez, a professor of politics at Northwestern University. Mr Biden has been criticised for failing to engage on this issue until now, he notes, and “perception is reality”.
That perception is translating into public opinion polls that paint a dark picture for the president. According to a recent Gallup survey, 28% of Americans named immigration as their top concern, beating out every other topic, including the economy and inflation. A Harris poll found Mr Biden’s approval rating on the issue at 35% – his lowest issue rating.
Some 61% of Americans in a Monmouth survey listed illegal immigration as a “very serious problem”, with a majority of respondents for the first time saying they support Mr Trump’s proposal of building a US-Mexico border wall.
Leaders in major Democrat-run US cities have grown increasingly critical of the president’s immigration policies – a consequence of the hundreds of thousands of migrants who have arrived in places like Chicago, Los Angeles and New York either on their own or with transportation arranged by Republican governors in states like Texas. (BBC)