A damning report reveals the Biden-Harris administration's failures in handling unaccompanied migrant children, exposing systemic problems and dangerous practices that have put countless youth in harm's way.
Last week's report from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General sent shockwaves through the nation: the Biden-Harris administration has no idea where 323,000 unaccompanied migrant children released from government custody are located. This shocking revelation exposes a profound failure in the administration's handling of a humanitarian crisis at the border.
However, the true extent of the crisis is even more alarming. The report focused solely on DHS, but a deeper investigation into the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) reveals systemic failures that have put children in grave danger.
Kamala Harris' Border Disaster: Putting Children at Risk
ORR has the responsibility of caring for unaccompanied children and ensuring their release to safe and thoroughly vetted sponsors. Yet, my years-long investigation into ORR has uncovered a disturbing pattern: Biden-Harris officials are prioritizing speed over safety when processing the thousands of unaccompanied minors crossing the border.
In a misguided attempt to reduce the overcrowding in processing facilities and shield the White House from political embarrassment, senior Biden-Harris officials directed ORR staff to expedite the release of migrant children to outside sponsors. This haste has led to catastrophic consequences.
Kamala Harris' Border Disaster: Putting Children at Risk
In some cases, the Biden-Harris administration has eliminated requirements that ORR officials check for criminal records or even verify the identity of sponsors. In one instance, ORR neglected to confirm the existence of a sponsor's claimed address, resulting in a child being sent to an open field.
The consequences of these failures are dire. Many of these unaccompanied children are forced into dangerous working conditions or exploited for illegal labor. In one facility alone, a 16-year-old boy tragically died when he was pulled into a meat-processing machine.
Kamala Harris' Border Disaster: Putting Children at Risk
Others have been forced into drug trafficking, sex trafficking, and other criminal activity to repay debts to the cartels that brought them here. The Biden-Harris administration has failed to provide any follow-up or oversight, leaving these children vulnerable and exploited.
The severe issues with ORR and the exploitation of unaccompanied children have been documented for years, but the Biden-Harris administration has failed to act. Even as record numbers of children continue to cross the border, there has been no substantive effort to fix the open border policies that have created this crisis or to reform ORR to protect unaccompanied children from harm.
Kamala Harris' Border Disaster: Putting Children at Risk
It is clear that Democrats view the border and the exploitation of children as political pawns rather than serious problems. They are quick to blame Republicans for the crisis they created, but fail to address the root causes or protect the vulnerable children caught in the crossfire.
Kamala Harris, the administration's self-proclaimed "border czar," has been notably absent in addressing this crisis. Despite being tasked with leading the effort to stem migration, she has failed miserably. Less than four years into her tenure, Harris' legacy is one of willful incompetence and the exploitation of unaccompanied children.
Kamala Harris' Border Disaster: Putting Children at Risk
The border crisis is a humanitarian disaster and a black mark on the Biden-Harris administration. The failure to protect unaccompanied children from harm is a moral failure that will have lasting consequences for these vulnerable youth. It is imperative that the administration take immediate action to address this crisis and put the safety and well-being of children first.
