South Lake Today

Washington, D.C. — Florida Congressman Daniel Webster, R-Clermont, along with U.S. Representative Lance Gooden (R-TX), and 28 other House Republicans, recently demanded answers from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas regarding an Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report. The report exposed DHS's failure to track nearly 177,000 migrants after their entry into the country, highlighting serious incompetence and posing risks to national security.

"Based on the OIG report and the countless incidents over the past two years, it is evident that migrants are disappearing into the interior of our country without DHS providing proper vetting and oversight of the critical information provided on release forms," said Florida Congressman Daniel Webster. "The failure to properly vet and trace these individuals is yet another disservice to the law-abiding American public."

In a letter to Secretary Mayorkas, the lawmakers requested answers to several pressing questions. They asked about the department's plan to enhance internal requirements and processes when migrants do not have a valid U.S. address. They also inquired about efforts to improve interagency communication to ensure the location of migrants flagged by law enforcement. Additionally, the letter sought information on the number of migrants with false addresses who were flagged by law enforcement and an estimate of how many migrants DHS believes have been lost within U.S. borders due to fraudulent or public post-release addresses. The lawmakers also asked for the names of the 25 charities listed by migrants in the OIG report and whether any of these charitable entities received DHS grants or contracts.

The letter was cosigned by Representatives Chris Smith (R-NJ), Troy Balderson (R-OH), Nancy Mace (R-SC), Byron Donalds (R-FL), Jake Ellzey (R-TX), Thomas P. Tiffany (R-WI), Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN), Pete Sessions (R-TX), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), John Rose (R-TN), Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), Brian Babin (R-TX), Scott Perry (R-PA), Matthew Rosendale (R-MT), George Santos (R-NY), Jay Obernolte (R-CA), Andy Ogles (R-TN), Josh Brecheen (R-OK), Keith Self (R-TX), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Bob Good (R-VA), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Scott Franklin (R-FL), Ronny Jackson (R-TX), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Michael Guest (R-MS), Ken Buck (R-CO), and Pete Stauber (R-MN).

To read the full text of the letter, click here.

For more information, visit:

- https://webster.house.gov

- https://www.dhs.gov