San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond is again facing criticism for misleading rhetoric regarding migrants at the San Diego border.
Desmond was forced to issue a correction Thursday on a Tweet that incorrectly stated county taxpayers were footing the bill for tents, food and water at open-air migrant encampments in Jacumba.
“During my recent border visit, I encountered an abandoned campsite filled with tents, food, drinks, and campfire paid for by the San Diego County taxpayers,” he wrote in the Tweet Wednesday that as of Friday had nearly 200,000 views on the social media platform X.
That’s a false statement. Though the county has allocated $6 million to fund a migrant welcome center in San Diego, zero taxpayer dollars have been spent on humanitarian aid at the open-air encampments in Jacumba and San Ysidro.
During a Dec. 5 Board of Supervisors’ meeting, Chief Administrative Officer Helen Robbins-Meyer said the $6 million could not be used to aid migrants in those camps.
Desmond, one of two Republicans on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, is an outspoken critic of state and federal immigration policy. He is a semiregular on Fox News and has repeatedly said the federal government should step in and help local municipalities overwhelmed by the increased migration.
They have receipts
Advocates who’ve been covering costs for the care of migrants made their displeasure with Desmond public on Thursday. They showed up in Desmond’s office at the County Administration Building with proof of their support.
Members of the Free Stuff Collective brought receipts totaling more than $60,000. They cover necessities from peanut butter, bananas and cups of ramen noodles to water bottles and chapstick.
The advocates chanted “shame, shame,” as they marched to Desmond’s office.
They say the receipts reveal what’s been happening at the Jacumba camps since Customs and Border Protection agents began using them last year.
“Here we have powdered milk for infants because there are babies,” said Mia Garcia, a member of the collective. “We have lactide and milk formula. I’ve seen a woman who was unable to produce breast milk because she was so malnourished.”
That formula was paid for by a donation of $28, Garcia added.
Garcia and others say the receipts only show part of the aid being provided: They’ve also received tents, blankets and generators, among other things. Then, of course, there is the time that people have spent volunteering in the Jacumba and San Ysidro camps.
The collective is just one of several mutual aid groups and nonprofits helping migrants in the encampments.
This isn’t the first time that Desmond has been called out for his rhetoric. In October, he said the border should be closed to prevent Hamas fighters from entering the United States — something Middle East experts called “completely unhinged.”
To his credit, Desmond is the only county supervisor who has actually visited the camps. He posted several videos from his recent trip to Jacumba. In one, he blasts the federal government for what he considers inhumane treatment of migrants.
“This is a broken immigration system — this is a terrible way to treat our fellow humans,” he said. “Having them come in and live in camps like this is pathetic.”
Advocates have criticized Democratic elected officials such as San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria and County Supervisor Nora Vargas for not visiting the encampments.
Correction made
Desmond wasn’t in his office Thursday when activists from the collective showed up with their receipts. But his communications director, Miles Himmel, was. The exchange was caught on video.
Himmel took responsibility for the inaccurate Tweet and promised to issue a correction — which he did later that day. “That’s my fault,” he said. “I wrote the caption.”
Activists told Himmel it was important to issue a correction because spreading misinformation on such a divisive topic could put them in danger.
“We’ve had people get hate messages because there are people that feel differently about this,” an activist said.
The exchange ended with Himmel offering words of encouragement and support to the activists.
“One thing that Jim [Desmond] has said throughout is that he appreciates what you guys are doing because no one else is doing it,” he said.
