Republican senator Marsha Blackburn has sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra demanding answers for the mishandling of migrant children following reports of forced labor and allegations that the government is delivering some to human traffickers.
Blackburn’s letter followed a New York Times report detailing a rise in child exploitation, where children are forced into the labor force—sometimes to pay back their smuggling costs. The Times reported that over the last two years, the agency could not reach more than 85,000 children and lost immediate contact with a third of migrant children.
Blackburn demanded Becerra provide her office with answers to a series of questions, including when he learned of the mishandling and exploitation of migrant children released by HHS to unvetted sponsors, and whether he was aware it is a crime under federal law to make a materially false statement to Congress.
Republicans have blamed the ongoing border crisis on the Biden administration’s policies, which they say have encouraged illegal migration and for parents to put their children into the hands of smugglers.
