OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
The popular Fox News Show “The Five” went insane as cohost Geraldo Rivera butted heads with cohosts Greg Gutfeld and Dana Perino because of Border Patrol agents who are set to be disciplined after an investigation found that they were not guilty of any wrongdoing.
It started when Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas took against horseback Border Patrol agents accused by left-leaning media figures and Democrats of using “whips” and reins to assail Haitian migrants trying to enter the U.S. illegally.
“Border Patrol agents seen on horseback confronting Haitian refugees have been removed from regular duty during an investigation into their actions, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told lawmakers Wednesday,” Newsmax reported.
“Videos showed law enforcement officers on horseback using aggressive tactics when confronting migrants in Del Rio, Texas. Some agents appeared to be swinging long reins,” the outlet continued, though Homeland Security officials said the agents were adhering to their training and attempting to keep the migrants away from horses so they did not get injured.
Still, Mayorkas, in testimony before the House and the Senate decried the agents’ behavior, saying he was “horrified” by what he saw in the media, telling Democrats he shared their outrage while pledging to “pull no punches” in ensuring agents would be disciplined if found to have violated their training and enforcement rules.
“The individuals, during the pendency of the investigation, are not conducting law enforcement duties to interact with migrants, but rather are conducting administrative duties,” said Mayorkas, who didn’t say how many agents were being investigated.
“I want to assure you that we are addressing this with tremendous speed and tremendous force. The facts will drive the action we take,” the DHS chief said.
He added, “It will be completed in days – not weeks.”
“I was horrified by what I saw. We will let the investigation run its course, but the pictures that I observed troubled me profoundly,” Mayorkas said to CNN. “One cannot weaponize a horse to aggressively attack a child. That is unacceptable. That is not what our policies and our training require. … We will not tolerate mistreatment.”
“I don’t think anyone seeing that footage would think it was acceptable or appropriate,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. “I don’t have the full context. I can’t imagine what context would make that appropriate.”
But months later National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd said to The New York Post that Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Personal Responsibility had a 500-page report on the investigation and even as the agents did not commit any crimes they could still be fired.
“No one knows what’s in the report,” he said. “I don’t know what’s in it. As of yesterday afternoon, the chief of the Border Patrol didn’t know what’s in it.”
“I’ve never seen a 500-page report where no one did anything wrong,” he said.
It is not known what policy they violated or what the discipline to them is going to be, but it had the cast of “The Five” in a fierce debate.
“In terms of the Border Patrol,” Rivera said, “this is, you must admit, when you look at this visual — put up a shot, put up any of the shots of that series —”
“No! No! That’s so wrong!” Perino argued. “You’re a lawyer; how can you say this?”
“Yeah, you’re a lawyer!” Gutfeld said.
“You have four grown-ups, and they’re riding these big horses,” Rivera argued. “And you got these people that just walked 5,000 miles risking everything, and now there are these big, macho guys —”
“Oh my God,” Perino said.
“How would you handle it, Geraldo?” co-host Jesse Watters said.
“Big, macho guy? You can’t even give these guys a little — you know what? Because you can’t even apologize for being wrong on this,” Gutfeld said.
Rivera said that he is “delighted that they are not being criminally prosecuted,” but Gutfield said, “No, you’re not. That’s not true!”
“Don’t tell me what I am feeling. You can have your opinion, but don’t have my opinion,” Rivera said. “I think this whole sorry chapter is better off in the rear view.”
“Because you’re wrong!” Gutfeld said. “Any time you’re wrong, you wish it would be in the rearview mirror, but no, it’s in the front view right now.”
