It’s been two months since the Biden administration and the media were whipped (pun intended) into a frenzy over photos and videos of border patrol agents on horseback trying to contain illegal immigrants crossing into the U.S.
The administration and legacy media outlets insisted that border patrol agents were “whipping” Haitian migrants who were trying to illegally cross into the U.S., even though no evidence showed this. The photos and videos produced as evidence showed border patrol agents using reins to control their horses and only once spinning those reins to keep a migrant from approaching the horse. At no point did any border patrol agent use a whip or even use the reins to whip migrants, as the media claimed.
Of course, that didn’t matter, since the Biden administration needed positive media coverage following its disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. So, President Joe Biden said the agents allegedly responsible “will pay.”
“To see people treated like they did? Horses running them over? People being strapped? It’s outrageous,” Biden said. “I promise you those people will pay. There will be consequences.”
“It’s dangerous, it’s wrong. It sends the wrong message around the world, it sends the wrong message at home. It’s simply not who we are,” he added.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas initially denied claims about border agents whipping migrants, but quickly changed his tune when appearing on CNN a day later.
“I was horrified by what I saw,” Mayorkas said on CNN’s “New Day” in late September. “I’m going to let the investigation run its course. But the pictures that I observed troubled me profoundly. That defies all of the values that we seek to instill in our people.”
Mayorkas said at the time that the investigation into the agents shouldn’t last more than several weeks. Now, two months later, DHS has provided an update – but not a conclusion – to that investigation.
“The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provides this update regarding the investigation of horse patrol activity in Del Rio, Texas on September 19, 2021. The activity under investigation, which was captured in photographs and video that circulated nationwide, occurred during the large gathering of Haitian and other migrants near the International Bridge,” DHS said in a statement Tuesday morning. “U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) initially referred the investigation to DHS’s Office of Inspector General (OIG). The OIG declined to investigate and referred the matter back to CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). OPR then immediately commenced investigative work, including its review of videos and photographs and the interview of witnesses, employees, and CBP leadership. OPR has followed customary process in its investigation of this matter.”
“Once completed, the results of the investigation will be provided to CBP management to determine whether disciplinary action is appropriate and, if so, the specific discipline to be imposed. At that time, the employees will be afforded due process, including an opportunity to respond, and any corrective actions will comport with applicable laws and regulations. The disciplinary process, which is separate from the fact-finding investigation, is subject to certain timelines established in CBP’s labor-management agreement with the employees’ union of the United States Border Patrol,” DHS added. “DHS remains committed to conducting a thorough, independent, and objective investigation. DHS will share information, as available, consistent with the need to protect the integrity of the investigation and individuals’ privacy.”