Texas Dem has MOVED ON from trying to get Kamala's help on immigration

Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar said that he's done trying to work with Vice President Kamala Harris on border issues.

'I say this very respectfully to her: I moved on,' Cuellar told The New York Times. 'She was tasked with that job, it doesn't look like she's very interested in this, so we are going to move on to other folks that work on this issue.'

Cuellar's gripes originated when Harris said she'd be visiting the border in June and a phone call from his office to hers went unreturned.

The Times was out with a profile of Harris on Thursday, which featured both fans and critics of the embattled vice president, who has seen her poll numbers slipping.

Some interviewed believe she's been handed a nearly impossible portfolio.

'I think it's no secret that the different things she has been asked to take on our incredibly demanding, not always well understood publicly and take a lot of work as well as a lot of skill,' Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told The Times. 'You have to do everything except one thing, which is take credit.'

There's been some chatter among D.C.'s political class that Buttigieg, instead of Harris, should be the next Democratic nominee. Both ran for the White House in 2020.

On immigration, Harris had been charged by President Joe Biden to deal with the root causes of migration, which meant dealing with diplomatic ties to the so-called northern triangle nations - Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras - where most of the current migrants are coming from.

But that assignment quickly turned her into a punching bag for all border-related problems.

In the spring, Harris was facing pressure to go to the border from Republicans and right-wing media outlets.

She scheduled her trip to the El Paso section of the U.S.-Mexico border after Trump announced he would be paying his border wall a visit.

Cuellar, whose district is in southern Texas and along the U.S.-Mexico border, had instructed his aides to call the vice president's office to give them some help.

He said his experience with her team has been disappointing.

The moderate Democrat told The Times that in the future he would go straight to the West Wing for any immigration problems.

'At least they talk to you,' he said.

(REUTERS)