Hillary Clinton: Migration ‘Went Too Far,’ Needs Humane Reform

In a notable shift from her previous stance, Hillary Clinton has called for “secure borders that don’t torture and kill people” during a panel discussion at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. The former Secretary of State and presidential candidate participated in a panel titled “The West-West Divide: What Remains of Common Values,” where she addressed migration policy.

“There is a legitimate reason to have a debate about things like migration,” Clinton stated during the conference. She continued by saying migration “went too far, it’s been disruptive and destabilizing, and it needs to be fixed in a humane way with secure borders that don’t torture and kill people and how we’re going to have a strong family structure because it is at the base of civilization.”

This marks an apparent evolution in Clinton’s position on border security since her 2016 presidential campaign. While she acknowledged during her campaign that physical barriers were appropriate in certain locations, she generally opposed large-scale border wall expansion, which was a cornerstone of Donald Trump’s platform.

During the Obama administration, Clinton supported executive actions that deferred immigration enforcement against millions of children and parents living in the country illegally. She also advocated ending family detention practices while focusing deportation efforts primarily on violent criminals rather than conducting widespread immigration raids.

In 2018, Clinton took a strong stance against the Trump administration’s family separation policy, writing on social media: “It is now the official policy of the US government — a nation of immigrants — to separate children from their families. That is an absolute disgrace. #FamiliesBelongTogether.”

Her comments in Munich come at a time when immigration continues to be a polarizing political issue in the United States. The Biden administration is currently overseeing a significant expansion of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention capacity, increasing to 92,600 beds as part of a $38.3 billion expansion, according to reports.

The timing of Clinton’s remarks is particularly relevant as Congress works through a $1.2 trillion spending bill with contentious provisions regarding ICE funding. Progressive lawmakers have expressed strong opposition to increased funding for immigration enforcement, creating tension within the Democratic Party over the appropriate approach to border security and immigration policy.

Immigration policy experts note that Clinton’s evolving position reflects broader shifts in how Democrats are approaching border security issues. With record numbers of migrant encounters at the southern border in recent years, some Democratic leaders have adopted stronger rhetoric on the need for border enforcement while still emphasizing humanitarian concerns.

As recently as last year, Clinton maintained her long-held position on the economic benefits of immigration. At the Newmark Civic Life Series in Manhattan, she argued that both legal and illegal immigrants have strengthened the American economy by expanding the workforce.

“One of the reasons why our economy did so much better than comparable advanced economies across the world is because we actually had a replenishment, because we had a lot of immigrants, legally and undocumented, who had a, you know, larger than normal — by American standards — families,” Clinton said at the event.

The ongoing debate over immigration policy continues to highlight the complex balance between border security, humanitarian concerns, family unity, and economic considerations that policymakers must navigate. Clinton’s recent comments suggest that even within established political positions, there may be room for evolution as the migration landscape changes.