Mayorkas-Biden Blame Game is Definition of Failure and Narcissism
Winston Churchill observed that “the price of greatness is responsibility.” He understood that meant accepting responsibility when things go wrong – and indeed, he admitted many mistakes during Britain’s World War II campaigns. Great leaders always acknowledge their errors. In 1961, President Kennedy took responsibility for the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion contritely observing, “Victory has a hundred fathers and defeat is an orphan.” Similarly, President Reagan assumed ownership of his administration’s Iran-Contra scandal in 1987 with an Oval Office address famously remarking, “what should happen when you make a mistake is this: You take your knocks, you learn your lessons, and then you move on. That’s the healthiest way to deal with a problem…you change. You go forward.”
Unless it’s the Biden administration and you’re Department Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. In that case, you blame New York for the migrant mess you handed them. As Politico reported, Secretary Mayorkas “sent letters to Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, citing two dozen areas where the city needs to improve its response to the crisis.” Mayorkas identified problems with New York’s “governance, issues of authority, structure, personnel, information flow, data collection, planning, case management, communications, and other aspects of day-to-day operations.”
…Bureaucratic double-speak substituting for what could be a simple, helpful memo: “I screwed up. Need to secure the border. Am on it ASAP. All the best, Alejandro.”
Of course, New York officials aren’t accepting responsibility for their sanctuary policies which compound the problem either. In a circular firing-squad fashion, Gov. Hochul is criticizing Mayor Adams for the shortage of migrant housing, and taking shots at Mayorkas observing, “The problem originated with the federal government, and must be resolved with the federal government.” In turn, Adams is accusing Hochul of not giving him enough aid and also now claims the federal government is to blame.
Nero fiddles while Rome burns.
Since the spring of 2022, more than 90,000 illegal migrants have arrived in New York City while in the 30 months that President Biden has been in office, Customs and Border Protection estimates they have encountered 6.9 million crossers. Another 1.7 million migrants are thought to be “got-a-ways.” The net effect has been disastrous; a total of 8.6 million people have entered our country illegally, while 5,000 illegal border crossings continue daily.
And, of course, there are the existing 16.8 million illegal aliens already residing in the U.S., none of whom seem to be leaving any time soon.
Blame-shifting is a toxic form of deflection that shirks responsibility and is one of the hallmark indicators of narcissism; a disorder defined as “selfishness, involving a sense of entitlement, a lack of empathy, and a need for admiration…a failure to distinguish the self from external objects.” And we might add “reality.” A perfect display of this narcissism — certainly arrogance — was apparent when Secretary Mayorkas refused to answer direct questions during the July 26 House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing.
Narcissism is one of the most persistent disorders, and almost impossible to fully cure. Mayokas has proven himself beyond rehabilitation and needs to be removed from office. Unfortunately, narcissism appears to run rampant throughout the Biden administration as evidenced by its unwillingness to accept the reality of, and responsibility for, the border crisis and its refusal to fix it.
Unlike finger-pointing officials in the current administration and in New York, American voters keenly see who’s to blame. They also understand big problems require great leaders. To that extent, voters will soon evaluate who’s psychologically and morally fit to identity problems, accept the responsibility to resolve them, and act selflessly in the broad national interest.