Biden and Trump are both at the border today, staking out ground on a key 2024 issue

President Biden is squaring off against former President Donald Trump on Thursday on one of the issues expected to dominate the 2024 presidential election: immigration.

Both Biden and Trump are visiting Texas border communities that have been grappling with large numbers of migrants seeking asylum. Biden will head to Brownsville, and Trump to Eagle Pass.

It's only the second time during his presidency that Biden has been to the border. The trip comes as Biden goes on the offensive, trying to turn the tables on an issue that has been a liability for him.

Only 29% of respondents in a recent NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll said they approve of the way Biden is handling immigration.

Biden is trying to flip the script on this issue

Biden will meet with Border Patrol agents and local leaders in Brownsville as he blames House Republicans for failing to pass border funding and policy changes that the community has been seeking.

Biden has said Trump saw a political advantage for his party to block bipartisan legislation that would have tightened rules for asylum, expanded detention facilities and provided more money to hire more border agents. Had the legislation passed, it would have helped Biden show he was willing to get tough on the issue.

"Every day between now and November, the American people are going to know that the only reason the border is not secure is Donald Trump and his MAGA Republican friends," Biden said after Republicans kept the bill from getting a Senate vote.

Trump sees the border as a winning issue for him

Trump — the front-runner in the race to be the Republican nominee in November — will visit Eagle Pass, a community where the state government has been trying to play a bigger role in enforcement.

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