Op-ed: Rep. August Pfluger: As border czar, Kamala Harris failed the American people. I saw this firsthand
As border czar, Vice President Kamala Harris has failed the American people in refusing to secure our border. The administration has allowed more than 10 million illegal immigrants to enter into our country—including known and suspected terrorists, violent rapists, and murderers. If she is elected president, the crisis will only get worse.
Shortly after she was tapped to lead the administration’s response to the immigration crisis in April 2021, I invited Vice President Harris to my district in Midland, Texas, where the Biden-Harris Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) hastily set up a migrant facility to house hundreds of children. The facility was set up with little to no coordination with state and local officials, and the lack of transparency and coordination manifested severe safety concerns for the children, including multiple reports of allegations of abuse, sexual assault, and insufficient staffing and reporting protocols.
The vice president was given an opportunity to view the inhumane conditions for herself and fulfill the expectations of her role. Unsurprisingly, the letter went unanswered. Her actions continued for years with the administration’s unacceptable posture of ignoring, denying, and deflecting when it comes to the crisis at the border.
As the Chairman of the Homeland Security Counterterrorism Subcommittee, I was among the group of lawmakers who exposed the jarring reality that known and suspected terrorists were crossing our southern border.
We were sneered at by Democrats and the media who told us we were wrong, but the truth has come out. Our committee forced the Biden-Harris administration to resume sharing monthly data on individuals apprehended at the southern border who match the terror watch list. We have now proven that over 370 known or suspected terrorists have crossed the southern border and that at least 99 have been knowingly released by the administration into our country in the last two years alone. This should shock and alarm every American.
In November 2023, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas refused to give a straight answer when I asked him if DHS detained individuals with known or suspected ties to terrorism who crossed the border illegally. Secretary Mayorkas’ refusal to confirm the whereabouts of these individuals and the administration’s policy on their entry was not only predictable, but another example of this administration’s refusal to take accountability for its actions.
Far too often the headlines read of violent, criminal illegal aliens committing appalling, devastating, and entirely preventable crimes in the United States. Just last week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Buffalo, New York arrested a Peruvian gang leader who committed 23 murders in Peru. This individual was caught and released at the U.S. border in May. Allowing unvetted criminals to roam free throughout our country is unacceptable and is egregiously negligent. President Biden and Vice President Harris have turned a blind eye to this situation, allowing it to happen again and again.
The negligence of our most valuable homeland security measures by the Biden-Harris administration is so inexplicable and unprecedented that it has relied on lying to the American people and denying the obligation it has had to protect the United States.
With Kamala Harris overseeing our border, politics have come before people. The vice president has made this too easy on our adversaries and those who wish harm upon the U.S. and it is setting a precedent that threatens the safety of our communities, family, democracy, and leadership on the world stage. We need a leader in the White House who will secure our border and protect Americans first.
