Republican lawmakers and conservative speaking heads are complaining about the Biden administration sending baby formula to the border in an apparent display of cruelty to ensure that children in U.S. custody are able eat.
Using the current baby formula shortage as a political bludgeon, prominent Republican lawmakers are saying that it’s “reckless” for the administration to be providing formula for asylum seekers and migrant children, claiming that President Joe Biden is putting “America last” by choosing not to withhold formula from babies at the border — language that echoes the rhetoric of former President Donald Trump.
Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Florida) was the firstShe claimed that the border had baby formula in stock and tweeted that a border patrol agent had sent her a picture of a shelf of baby formula between two shelves of snacks to older children. She also tweeted a photo of a store close to her home that had baby food on shelves that were empty. There is currently no proofThe photo of the baby product was actually taken at a border station.
“The first photo is from this morning at the Ursula Processing Center at the U.S. border. Shelves and pallets packed with baby formula,” Cammack wrote. “The second is from a shelf right here at home. Formula is rare. This is what America last looks like.”
Soon after, several Republicans began tweeting and speaking out about the issue, essentially implying that Biden shouldn’t give border facilities baby formula and that he should instead allow babies at the border to starve. Already babies at the border face inhumane conditionsThey may be separated from their parents, while others are cared for by their parents. have undergone traumatic conditionsThis has stopped their bodies producing breast milk.
The same Republicans claim to be “pro-life”In their campaign to end abortion, and to criminalize anyone who has an abortion, they include those who are at risk of dyingPregnancy.
On Thursday, Rep. Michael Waltz (R. Florida) blamed Biden and perpetuated the shortage of baby formula in a press conference. racist stigmaConcerning drug use. “In Joe Biden’s America, it seems like it’s easier to get a crack pipe in a government funded smoking kit than it is to find baby formula,” he said.
Waltz’s statement references a long-debunked claim that the Biden administration has been giving out drug paraphernalia for free — which is false, although harm reduction groups do give out drugs and drug-related items in order to help drug users access these items in a safe environment that could help lead them to services like medical and addiction treatment.
In the meantime, in a jointly statementTexas Gov. Brandon Judd with National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd Greg Abbott said, “While mothersAnd fathers stare at empty grocery store shelves in a panic, the Biden Administration is happy to provide baby formula to illegal immigrants coming across our southern border.” Lawmakers like Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee) and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia)Also, they joined the xenophobia & racism.
“Rather than having the state of Texas help mothers, Governor Abbot [sic] apparently thinks Biden should starve babies locked in Border Patrol detention centers,” wroteAaron Reichlin Melnick, senior policy counsel at the American Immigration Council, on Thursday. “And to be clear, the amount of baby formula used at the border is infinitesimal compared to the national demand.”
The photo that sparked the outpouring of conservative complaints appears indeed to show that border officials are alleged to have at least 2,016 units baby formula. But this was not the case. similar recalls of baby formulaManufacturers have been affected by the loss of millions of units. rake in billions of dollarsEach year, U.S. infant formula markets are flooded with new products.
A report from last month revealed that around 43 percent of all formulas are currently in use. out of stock across the countryAs a result, recallsAnd supply chain problems. A Trump-era trade agreement currently limits imports of baby food from Canada, one of the U.S.’s most prominent trading partners. Republicans are on the attack about the issueAccording to him, the Biden administration should’ve had a plan for addressing the shortage.
The Food and Drug Administration is planning to announceTo address the problem, the White House is in talks to manufacturers and grocers about increasing formula access. Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary has stated that the administration is investigating all options for increasing production, including using the Defense Production Act.
