Sen. Cruz: President Biden’s Botched Withdrawal Has Imported an Acute Human Rights Crisis into the U.S.

HOUSTON, Texas - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement today in response to reports that President Biden's evacuation from Afghanistan was linked to the transfer of child brides into the United States:

"These reports are credible and horrifying. President Biden had no plan for a secure, orderly, and responsible withdrawal from Afghanistan. Instead, the President and Biden-Harris officials imposed arbitrary deadlines for political purposes. They rushed the evacuation to expedite moving tens of thousands of Afghans into the United States without thoroughly vetting them for security, health, and humanitarian concerns.

"I had called for refugees to remain in safe third countries while they were vetted, but instead, President Biden rushed to bring them to the United States. It was already clear his reckless decision threatened the security and health of Americans, from concerns over terrorism to evacuees testing positive for COVID-19. Today we learned that President Biden has also imported an acute human rights crisis into the United States.

"There have been multiple cases of child brides and polygamous families from Afghanistan arriving at military bases here in America as part of their botched evacuation. Reports even suggest that some of the exploitation was a direct result of the Biden administration's chaotic evacuation process, a process that has enabled and incentivized coercion and abuse to the point where Biden Administration officials may well be complicit in child trafficking.

"Every Biden-Harris official linked to this disgrace should and must be held accountable."

###