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Rep. Ocasio-Cortez Confronts DHS Chief over Racist & Sexist Border Patrol Posts

HeadlineJul 19, 2019

Also at Thursday’s House Oversight hearing, Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez confronted Kevin McAleenan over hateful messages shared by thousands of current and former Border Patrol agents on a private Facebook group. The group’s online discussions, exposed by ProPublica earlier this month, are full of homophobic, anti-immigrant and misogynistic content about migrants and asylum seekers, as well as racist attacks on Texas Representative Veronica Escobar and on Ocasio-Cortez, who is depicted in a photoshopped image being sexually assaulted by President Trump. This is Congressmember Ocasio-Cortez questioning McAleenan.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “Did you see the posts mocking migrant children’s deaths?”

Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan: “I did.”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “Did you see the posts planning physical harm to myself and Congresswoman Escobar?”

Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan: “Yes, and I directed an investigation within minutes of reading the article.”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “Did you see the images of officers circulating photoshopped images of my violent rape?”

Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan: “Yes, I did.”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “Are those officers on the job today and responsible for the safety of migrant women and children?” 

Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan: “So, there is an aggressive investigation on this issue proceeding. You’ve heard the chief of the Border Patrol, the most senior female official in law enforcement across the entire country, say that these posts do not meet our standards of conduct, and they will be followed up aggressively.”

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