As the crowd filtered out of a Wayne banquet hall after a Kellyanne Conway for Jay Webber event Monday night, Ron DeFilippis, the chair of the Republican committee in Webber’s home county of Morris, was asked to size up the race.

Polls, both public and internal, show Democrat Mikie Sherrill with a slight lead in the race for Congress in the 11th District.  A poll last week that gave Sherrill a lead of 11 points is probably an outlier.

DeFilippis said he thinks Webber has the momentum and he cited what’s going on in “Honduras” as a reason why.

Webber must have overheard the conversation. Or maybe he’s the one who put the idea in DeFilippis’ head.

On Tuesday, Webber tweeted that the potential mayhem on the southern border is the fault of liberals.

Here’s his tweet, which was accompanied by photos of migrants crowded together.

“This is the result of the radical left that MontclairMikie campaigns right alongside. They call for open borders, abolishing ICE & sanctuary cities. They must know that those policies encourage illegal immigration and this looming disaster.”

An objective observer must begin by pointing out that since Democrats are not in power, they have no  “policies” guiding the country.

But that really is not the point.

For better or for worse, Webber seems to be entering the last two weeks of the campaign as an uncompromising Trump-backer. His comments on the migrant caravan mimicked President Trump in both substance and form.

Will it work?

The answer probably is two-fold.

It can lure more conservatives to the polls. But it also can give those on the left more ammunition to persuade like-minded souls to vote as well.

It is also necessary to separate politics from real life.

Many of those in the caravan are fleeing poverty and violence in their home countries, notwithstanding the president’s unproven contention that they’re filled with gang members and “Middle Easterners.”

The caravan is getting more attention because of the looming midterm election. But such movements are not new.

In the past, many have dissipated before reaching the United States. It is an awfully long trek, you know. And those who make it are not guaranteed asylum.

The hard facts aside, there is nothing new about people fleeing poverty and hardship trying to come to the United States.

And if these people didn’t have enough troubles, now they’re in the middle of a congressional campaign.