South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem warned on Thursday that Mexican cartels are operating and “trafficking” children in her state.
Appearing on Fox News’ Fox & Friends, Noem spoke about how immigration is affecting states across the U.S., including her own, and said that “it’s because the cartels are here.”
“They’re not just at the border, they’re here in South Dakota and they’re bringing fentanyl in that’s killing our kids and trafficking our children,” she said.
Noem and 24 other Republican governors recently signed a letter criticizing President Joe Biden’s handling of the U.S.-Mexico border crisis. The letter also expressed support for Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who has been in a dispute over border security with Biden and his administration.
“We stand in solidarity with our fellow Governor, Greg Abbott, and the State of Texas in utilizing every tool and strategy, including razor wire fences, to secure the border,” the governors said in the letter. “We do it in part because the Biden Administration is refusing to enforce immigration laws already on the books and is illegally allowing mass parole across America of migrants who entered our country illegally.”
South Dakota’s Legislature recently passed a bill recognizing the need to secure the U.S.-Mexico border and expressing South Dakota’s support for border states.
The national security crisis happening at the Southern Border affects every state, including South Dakota,” Noem said in a statement announcing the legislation. “I am glad that the Legislature sees the severity of this matter and agrees that we need to take action to secure our borders.”
