(The Center Square) – As the border crisis continues, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is demanding answers from the Department of Homeland Security to learn how many foreign nationals the Biden-Harris administration is flying from the border to Missouri. He’s also demanding answers from the Democratic leaders of St. Louis and Kansas City as well as from county clerks, county prosecutors, airlines and transportation companies.
Bailey sued DHS requesting the court require it to comply with a Freedom of Information request seeking documents and communications about foreign nationals in the U.S. illegally being transported to Missouri. The agency has failed to produce the records in violation of federal law.
“Once again, the Biden Administration is trying to stonewall and circumvent every aspect of the law in order to hide information from Americans,” Bailey said. “Their most recent refusal to provide the truth about the flying of illegal immigrants into Missouri is just the tip of the iceberg. It reflects a larger pattern of deploying delay and diversion tactics to avoid producing documents legally requested under FOIA. Here in Missouri, we hold bad actors accountable when they refuse to obey the law, even the federal government. I will not stop until I obtain answers for Missourians.”
The complaint states: “The Missouri Attorney General’s Office has reason to believe the Biden Administration is deliberately flying illegal aliens from the border to the interior of the country and has sought to gain public records on behalf of Missouri citizens but has been met with federal interference. Instead of promptly providing the AGO with the requested documents,” DHS has “belatedly responded with a denial of this request based on a clearly erroneous reading” of the FOIA request.
Under the previous attorney general, Eric Schmitt, who is now a U.S. senator, the OAG submitted a FOIA request with DHS in June 2022. “DHS refused to comply,” Bailey said. “Upon learning of new evidence that illegal immigrants were being flown from the border directly into Kansas City and St. Louis,” he amended the FOIA request to make it more specific. After denying his request, he sued.
Next, he sent letters to all county clerks to ensure election laws are enforced. With an estimated more than “72,000 illegal aliens currently residing” in Missouri, he said, “This influx of illegal aliens into our State raises concerns over unregistered and illegal voting. As Missouri prepares for upcoming elections, we must be on the lookout for any form of voter fraud.”
Bailey also provided clarification about state election law, saying county clerks “are the most important line of defense in keeping our elections secure” and his office stands ready to help enforce the law.
He also sent a letter to all county prosecutors offering to assist with prosecution of crimes allegedly committed by foreign nationals. “Among the most urgent issues facing our nation today is the flood of illegal aliens coming across our borders. Every state is dealing with a flood of negative impacts from nearly unrestricted immigration,” he said.
After learning that the Biden-Harris administration was flying “illegal aliens into St. Louis and Kansas City,” he requested information from the cities’ Democratic mayors. “It has come to my attention that the Biden administration has been conducting undisclosed flights to bring thousands of aliens, many of them illegal, into the United States, completely ignoring federal immigration laws or undermining them by allowing widespread fraud among applications for the program. Evidence has surfaced that some of these flights were to Kansas City” and to St. Louis, he wrote in separate letters. “The citizens of our state deserve to know whether any city officials were aware of or were complicit in this activity, which may have violated state law.”
He requested that the mayors provide him with communication between city employees and federal officials related to such transportation.
He also sent warning letters to all major airlines and transportation companies about state law prohibiting them from knowingly transporting illegal foreign nationals throughout Missouri.
