‘We can only do this together.’ Rep. Sherrill weighs in on migrant relocation crisis
Gov. Murphy and others have spoken out against a proposal to house migrants at Atlantic City International Airport.
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Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill weighed in on the controversy over whether to potentially house migrant families at Atlantic City International Airport.
“We can only do this together, and it’s something that we see a greater and greater need for in this country,” Sherrill told News 12’s Alex Zdan.
Gov. Phil Murphy stated on News 12’s “Ask Gov. Murphy” program last week that the state could not accommodate migrants in Atlantic City or anywhere else in the state.
“I don’t see any scenario where we’re going to be able to take in a program in Atlantic City, or frankly elsewhere in the state,” Murphy said.
RELATED: ‘I don’t see any scenario’ where NJ can take in displaced migrants: Gov. Murphy
Sherrill declined to criticize the governor on Thursday, saying the solution to the migration crisis needs to come from Washington.
“This country needs a comprehensive immigration plan. It’s got to be bipartisan. It has to include border security, processing families, pathway to citizenship,” Sherrill said.
The governor previously agreed that the help needs to come from the federal government.
“You need scale, an enormous amount of federal support, resources that go beyond anything we can afford,” Murphy said.
After repeatedly calling New Jersey a sanctuary state when former President Donald Trump was in office, Murphy said last week that he didn’t agree with the designation of Atlantic City International Airport by the Biden administration to potentially house migrant families.
Several Atlantic County elected officials also spoke out against the plan.
RELATED: Officials oppose Biden administration plans to move migrants to Atlantic City Int’l Airport
“We are not the solution to a problem we did not create,” said Republican Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson.
Immigration advocates have spoken out against Murphy’s comments last week, but Sherrill says the solution is a bipartisan compromise.
"We’ve seen a Republican president, Republican Senate and a Republican Congress fail to be able to come up with a plan. We’ve seen a Democratic president and a Democratic Congress fail to come up with a plan. We can only do this together,” she said.
The Atlantic City International Airport plan appears to be dead for now.
WATCH: Gov. Murphy discusses migrant crisis on "Ask Gov. Murphy."
