As Haitian migrants flooded into the U.S. last month, the Biden administration finally began to pay attention to the border crisis it created. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to change course, but to attack the brave men and women bearing the brunt of the disaster.
In a despicable attempt to change the narrative away from its own calamitous policies, the administration and their allies in the corporate media orchestrated a smear campaign against U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents.
After photographs surfaced online of Border Patrol agents on horseback holding onto their reins in front of a group of Haitian migrants, anti-borders activists on social media claimed that the reins were actually whips being used against the migrants.
It was a preposterous claim, but the administration was ready to pounce. After initially defending the agents, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas reversed course, saying that the images “conjured up the worst elements of our nation’s ongoing battle against systemic racism,” and halted the use of horses at the border.
Joe Biden himself vowed that the Border Patrol agents would be punished, despite no evidence of wrongdoing.
“It's outrageous. I promise you those people will pay. There will be an investigation underway now, and there will be consequences. There will be consequences,” he said.
Democrats in Congress were even more hysterical. California Rep. Maxine Waters called the photographs worse than slavery, while Florida Rep. Frederica Wilson said that the administration had an obligation to release all Haitian migrants into the U.S. Rev. Al Sharpton made a trip to the border in an attempt to further sow discord, but was shouted down by locals, who want a secure border, not political hucksterism. Unfortunately for the hucksters, the narrative was debunked by video, as well as the photographer who took the pictures.
“Some of the Haitian men started running, trying to go around the horses,” photographer Paul Ratje said. “I’ve never seen them whip anyone. He was swinging it, but it can be misconstrued when you’re looking at the picture.”
It’s easy to see why the Biden administration has adopted this obviously false narrative, given the growing opposition from the American people to its radical immigration agenda. The smears against border patrol agents are a clear effort from the administration to muddy the waters and polarize this issue. It’s an odious political tactic that could have real world consequences, and a demoralizing effect on overworked and underappreciated Border Patrol agents.
Mayorkas has promised that the agents in question will receive due process, but can anybody trust this administration to conduct a fair investigation? And, why is an investigation even necessary when video evidence and testimony from the photographer clearly demonstrates that the agents did nothing wrong?
In many ways, the investigation itself is the punishment. These agents have already been smeared by the White House and the media for simply doing their job. That the Biden administration would engage in an effort to deter these agents from doing their job suggests that they are not opposed to the invasion happening at our border, but in fact welcome it. Thankfully, other elected officials in the midst of the crisis have defended the agents.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, whose state has been ravaged by Biden’s anti-borders agenda, has said that he will hire the agents if Biden fires them.
The Biden administration’s smear campaign against Border Patrol agents is a new low in its war against America’s sovereignty. As the flow of migrants coming into the U.S. continues to set records, a strong border patrol is needed now more than ever. Agents on the ground have been trashed and abandoned by the White House, making it crucial for state and local leaders, as well as American citizens to make clear that we have their back.
Dale L. Wilcox is executive director and general counsel at the Immigration Reform Law Institute, a public interest law firm working to defend the rights and interests of the American people from the negative effects of mass migration.
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