South Alabama Times

Washington, D.C. - On April 27, 2023, Rep. Barry Moore (AL-02) participated in the House Judiciary Committee's Immigration subcommittee hearing regarding the exploitation of migrant children. Witnesses included Tara Lee Rodas, Health and Human Services Whistleblower and Federal Inspector General Employee, Sheena Rodrigues, Founder and President of the Alliance for a Safe Texas, Jessica Vaughan, Director of Policy at the Center for Immigration Studies, and Robert Carey, Principal at Migration Works LLC.

From his exchange with Tara Lee Rodas, Health and Human Services Whistleblower:

Rep. Moore: "Ms. Rodas, you said these kids are being recruited in their home countries -- what do you mean by that?"

Ms. Rodas: We have children saying that there are radio advertisements in their home town, for instance in Guatemala, they're advertising 'come with us, we will give you passage to the United States'."

Rep. Moore: You mentioned [earlier in the hearing] that these children are in debt bondage, what do you mean when you say debt bondage? Who does the money go to?

Ms. Rodas: The money goes to the traffickers, who ultimately bring the children here. The New York Times actually showed, Hannah Dryer did an amazing expose where she showed the debt page of the child, how much the child has to pay for food, how much the child had to pay for rent, all of those things.

Rep. Moore: "So this administration is really engaged in creating slavery, we are trafficking slaves to our country.

Ms. Rodas: "Absolutely. There is no doubt. We have created a pull, and because this criminal element tragically views children as a commodity, we, they see us as the middle man, because we are paying the passage to the end user, the trafficker."

Rep. Moore's full remarks can be seen here: High-res | Twitter

Original source can be found here.