Texas Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee demanded there be an “internal” DHS task force to investigate child migrant deaths, but then was informed that such an entity already exists.
“I believe there should be an internal task force set up dealing with children, dealing with children’s death,” Jackson Lee said Wednesday during a House Homeland Security hearing. She was speaking to Kevin McAleenan, the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). “My question to you is: Will you set up an internal in-house task force to deal with … these deaths, to find what solutions should be put in place?”
The acting DHS secretary then informed Jackson Lee that the task force she was describing already exists within the department.
“We already have internal task forces working these issues,” McAleenan responded. In response, Jackson Lee asked for the names of the individuals involved because Americans are “outraged.”
Trump Announces Christmas Day Strikes on Islamic Terrorists Involved in Nigerian Christian Genocide
Nebraska grandfather killed in ‘freak accident’ at McDonald’s drive-thru
Ultra High Level Democrat Influencer Calls for Violence Against ‘Dead Man Walking’ Trump on Christmas Eve – Calls on People to ‘Put Him to Sleep’
Santa with CCW gets pulled over, tells Ohio deputy ‘you got to protect yourself’ during festive traffic stop
Nonprofit uses underwater technology to search for missing service members
Fox News ‘Antisemitism Exposed’ Newsletter: UN bigot out at Georgetown
Kim Jong Un swipes at South Korea’s progress building a nuclear submarine while inspecting his own
Poll: Young Protestants Are Officially Outnumbered by the ‘Nones’
Florida man kills wife, shoots stepdaughter over NFL game argument before taking own life
Wild Christmas Miracle: Watch a Bona Fide Miracle in Real Time as Skydiver Gets Caught on Plane, Plummets, then Manages to Cheat Death
Biden nearly invisible in own Christmas family photo as Hunter takes center stage
5 Things the GOP Needs to Change to Win the 2026 Midterms
Lawmakers attempt to tackle NIL, giving it the ‘old college try’
LA Garbage Crisis Is So Bad One Man Quit His Job to Pick Up the City’s Slack
And We Thought Fruitcake Was Bad: Italian Company Is 3D Printing ‘Pastries’ That Are Made of Truly Gross-Sounding Ingredients
The exchange follows the death of a 16-year-old Guatemalan migrant who passed away while in Border Patrol custody.
The Guatemalan boy was apprehended on May 13 for illegally crossing the U.S. border near Hidalgo, Texas. He was diagnosed with the flu and prescribed medicine Sunday after telling medical staff he didn’t feel well. However, he was found unresponsive by Monday morning while in the Weslaco Station in Texas.
Following news of the boy’s death, Customs and Border Protection immediately announced that “an independent and thorough review of the circumstances” would be conducted. The facility that housed him has since stopped taking in new migrants after a high number of detainees began reporting flu-like symptoms.
The boy’s death — the fifth in Border Patrol custody since December — has sparked renewed outrage from Democratic lawmakers.
McAleenan said that DHS is already working to beef up medical resources to better accommodate the huge influx of families and children arriving at the border, informing Jackson Lee that 55 medical professionals are “on board” in El Paso alone to care for migrants.
Trump Announces Christmas Day Strikes on Islamic Terrorists Involved in Nigerian Christian Genocide
Nebraska grandfather killed in ‘freak accident’ at McDonald’s drive-thru
Ultra High Level Democrat Influencer Calls for Violence Against ‘Dead Man Walking’ Trump on Christmas Eve – Calls on People to ‘Put Him to Sleep’
Santa with CCW gets pulled over, tells Ohio deputy ‘you got to protect yourself’ during festive traffic stop
Nonprofit uses underwater technology to search for missing service members
Fox News ‘Antisemitism Exposed’ Newsletter: UN bigot out at Georgetown
Kim Jong Un swipes at South Korea’s progress building a nuclear submarine while inspecting his own
Poll: Young Protestants Are Officially Outnumbered by the ‘Nones’
Florida man kills wife, shoots stepdaughter over NFL game argument before taking own life
Wild Christmas Miracle: Watch a Bona Fide Miracle in Real Time as Skydiver Gets Caught on Plane, Plummets, then Manages to Cheat Death
Biden nearly invisible in own Christmas family photo as Hunter takes center stage
5 Things the GOP Needs to Change to Win the 2026 Midterms
Lawmakers attempt to tackle NIL, giving it the ‘old college try’
LA Garbage Crisis Is So Bad One Man Quit His Job to Pick Up the City’s Slack
And We Thought Fruitcake Was Bad: Italian Company Is 3D Printing ‘Pastries’ That Are Made of Truly Gross-Sounding Ingredients
“These tragedies are devastating to us, and they are avoidable,” the DHS secretary said during the hearing. He used his time with lawmakers to not only request additional funds to address the crisis, but also called for legislative reforms to allow immigration officials to have “additional authorities” when handling unaccompanied minors from Central America.
“Our immigration system is full and we are well beyond our capacity at every stage of the process,” he said.
Story cited here.
