Biden Administration Officials Sued For Maligning Border Agents
Some top officials of the Biden administration are now facing legal challenges over their false statements regarding border agents; they accused them of whipping Haitian immigrants last year.
The lawsuit is against the Department of Homeland Security and the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for not disclosing the results of the investigations.
Lawsuit For Maligning Border Officials
On Thursday, the National Police Association (NPA) sued the border officials who tried to withhold information about the White House’s attempt to handle the 2021 Haitian immigrants incident at Del Rio, Texas.
The lawsuit is filed under the Freedom of Information Act, which paves the way toward access to publicly available government records.
Back at the time of the incident, President Biden accused border agents of inhumane treatment of Haitian immigrants.
However, this time, NPA spokesperson Betsy Brantner Smith noted the White House is trying to charge border officials with “administrative violations” so it does not have to take its whipping charges back.
So, the spokesperson continued, the lawsuit is filed to get the investigative documents by the DHS and CBP as soon as possible. This would establish the whipping allegations made by the White House were false.
When the photos of the incident went viral, and the border officials were accused of using whips against immigrants, Border Patrol agents were scrutinized badly by liberal groups.
However, Border Patrol issued a clarification that agents are not allowed to carry whips.
It suggested the photo showed agents carrying horses’ reins in such a way that stopped horses from pounding the immigrants they may perceive as a threat.
Just like any other incident, Biden’s officials jumped to the conclusion without waiting for the investigation. President Biden himself claimed immigrants were “being strapped” by the agents and those agents “will pay.”
DHS secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said he was “horrified” by the images, just to admit later on that he issued this statement without even seeing the images.
Biden Failed to Make Investigations Public
When the administration was pressured to investigate the matter, Mayorkas told Congress he would reach a conclusion in “days, not weeks.” However, no conclusion has been disclosed even nine months after the incident.
Earlier this year, DHS officials stated the administration is highly unlikely to share the conclusion publicly, as it would only embarrass the top officials.
As border agents were shamed after the administration’s statements, the NPA asked DHS and CBP to share all the communication between them regarding the incident, including text, emails, and other forms of shared messages.
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Poster Comment:
Whipped with horse's reins? How ridiculous.