Republican senators introduced a bill Wednesday that would require DNA testing at the southern border in order to fight against child sex trafficking.
The “End Child Trafficking Now Act” would require the Department of Homeland Security to deport adult illegal immigrants upon refusing to take a DNA test. It would also mandate that they receive a “maximum 10-year prison sentence” for lying about “family ties or guardianship over a minor,” the Daily Wire reported.
Sens. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Mike Rounds of South Dakota have joined forces for the anti-trafficking bill.
“Drug cartels and gangs are using children to falsely present themselves as family units … These unaccompanied minors are especially vulnerable to trafficking and are often forced to perform sex acts,” Blackburn said in a press statement.
“Making DNA tests mandatory on anyone claiming a family relationship with a minor will send a powerful message that traffickers will be caught and aggressively prosecuted,” she added.
GOP Senators Introduce ‘End Child Trafficking Now Act’ https://t.co/5YTYViw15O pic.twitter.com/37tAi0Gk21
— The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) March 25, 2021
Fifty percent of Americans said that they felt that the ongoing immigration situation at the border was a crisis, according to a recent poll conducted by Politico and Morning Consult. Illegal border crossings have skyrocketed since Biden took office. (RELATED: ‘I Fought Back Tears’: Democratic Senator Says He Witnessed Separated Children At Biden Border Facility)
In February, 100,441 arrests were made regarding people trying to illegally cross the border, and unaccompanied minors made up almost 10% of these arrests, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Photos released by Axios showed children detained in plastic cages, or “pods,” in facilities. The immigration facilities have a 260-person capacity, though one facility reportedly held around 400 children.