The Biden administration likely sees the entire public controversy over the nonexistent ‘whipping’ of Haitan illegal immigrants as a resounding success.
At the risk of sounding even more cynical than usual, I suspect the Biden administration sees the entire public controversy over the nonexistent “whipping” of Haitan illegal immigrants as a resounding success.
The sudden reversal on the part of Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas is the tell. Appearing with U.S. Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz in Del Rio on September 20, Mayorkas initially expressed skepticism that any border patrol agents had whipped Haitian migrants. “To ensure control of the horse, long reins are used, but we are going to investigate the facts to ensure that the situation is as we understand it to be, and if it’s anything different we will respond accordingly.”
But four days later at the White House, Mayorkas completely adopted the false narrative that agents under his command had whipped human beings. “Those images painfully conjured up the worst elements of our nation’s ongoing battle against systemic racism. We have been swift and thorough in our response… We ceased the use of horse patrol units in the area. The agents involved in these incidents have been assigned to administrative duties and are not interacting with migrants while the investigation is ongoing.”
If you’re Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, or anyone in the administration, you’re extremely uncomfortable with a lengthy period of public attention upon border security or illegal immigration. That discussion reminds people that Biden pledged to “ensure that the U.S. meets its responsibilities as both a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants” and declared, “the U.S. has a right and a duty to secure our borders and protect our people against threats.” So far, Biden, Harris, and their staff have done a terrible job in achieving those goals. A crowd of 10,000 migrants in Del Rio is a vivid demonstration that the administration has completely failed to secure the border or stem the tide of migrants. On the campaign trail, Biden vehemently denied that he believed in open borders. But for all extents and purposes, the Biden administration’s policy is a porous border and catch-and-release for many of those who are caught trying to sneak across. Even if Biden doesn’t believe in open borders, his policies are close enough.
A lengthy period of public attention upon border security or illegal immigration would be more bad news for an administration that is not exactly awash in goodwill and positive momentum, after Afghanistan, lingering inflation worries and seemingly endless spending negotiations on Capitol Hill.
But if you’re Biden, Harris, or anyone in the administration, you’re extremely comfortable with a discussion about racism, and racism and cruelty in law enforcement, particularly in the enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. That’s intensely familiar territory for everyone involved, basically a rehash of accusations from during the Trump administration. Biden and Harris get to emote, shake their heads, decry the inhumanity, and along the way, act like they’re not actually in change of the law enforcement agencies that are allegedly doing these terrible things. And they get the shift the perception of the problem from 10,000 illegal immigrants camped under a bridge to the image of two Haitians and a border patrol agent on a horse.
By talking about the nonexistent whipping, Biden and Harris – and eventually, Mayorkas – managed to shift the issue from the real-life problem of a massive migrant camp to the nonexistent problem of Border Patrol agents whipping migrants. And obviously, it’s a lot easier to solve nonexistent problems.