Retired Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott revealed to the Daily Caller News Foundation that the Biden-Harris administration allegedly took significant measures to obscure the immigration crisis from the public. This revelation came shortly after former San Diego Sector Chief Aaron Heitke made comparable allegations before a House committee on September 18. Heitke claimed that the White House directed agents to withhold information on arrests of special interest aliens (SIAs), relocate large groups of undocumented migrants away from media attention, and implement other strategies to mask the true extent of the border crisis. Scott, who led the Border Patrol during the final year of the Trump administration and the early months of the Biden administration, corroborated that he received similar directives.
“There was a gag order put on us literally within minutes of the Biden administration taking office,” Scott told the DCNF.
“The chief of staff for Customs and Border Protection, when she arrived, one of her first orders was to forbid us from talking to the public, or doing press releases, or doing media without the White House clearing our statements,” Scott continued. “Not only were they not cleared, when they finally did give us talking points, they weren’t even accurate. They weren’t truthful.”
Scott’s time as Border Patrol chief coincided with Vice President Kamala Harris’s role in addressing the root causes of illegal immigration from Central America. He confirmed to the DCNF that Harris never reached out to him, even after being designated as “border czar.”
Having served in Border Patrol since the early 1990s, Scott has witnessed numerous shifts in administration. He noted that while restrictions on public communication were not uncommon, the unprecedented level of control imposed by the Biden-Harris administration was unlike anything he had encountered before.
“No press conferences were approved, all border tours were shut down,” Scott said. “It was unprecedented. I’ve never seen a gag order that tight.”
Scott’s remarks to the DCNF came in the wake of Heitke’s testimony, in which the former San Diego sector chief agent stated he was forbidden from discussing the increasing number of special interest aliens (SIAs)—migrants who could pose a national security threat to the U.S.—illegally crossing the border.
“Prior to this administration, the San Diego sector averaged 10–15 SIAs per year,” Heitke told the House Homeland Committee. “Once word was out that the border was far easier to cross, San Diego went to over 100 SIAs in 2022, way over 100 SIAs in 2023 and more than that this year.”
“These are only the ones we caught. At the time, I was told I could not release any information on this increase in SIAs or mention any of the arrests,” he continued. “The administration was trying to convince the public that there was no threat at the border.”
Heitke elaborated on the purported measures the Biden-Harris administration took to conceal large groups of migrants from reporters, accusing the White House of presenting a “fictional” narrative to the public.
“Each time we asked for help in dealing with a new issue, it fell on deaf ears,” Heitke said. “At times in San Diego, we had 2,000 or more aliens sitting in between the fences asking to turn themselves in. I was told to move them out of sight of the media.”
This isn’t the first instance of agents accusing the Biden-Harris administration of deliberately obscuring the severity of the border crisis from the media. Prior to Harris’s inaugural visit to El Paso, Texas, in 2021, administration officials reportedly instructed agents to clear the area of migrants to create a favorable “show” for the vice president, according to Border Patrol sources cited by the New York Post.
While an executive order from President Biden in June led to a notable decrease in illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border in recent months, his administration had previously overseen a significant surge in illegal immigration after implementing a series of executive orders that effectively dismantled the Trump administration’s border policies.
Since the beginning of the Biden-Harris administration, Border Patrol agents have encountered over seven million migrants illegally crossing into the U.S., according to the latest data from Customs and Border Protection (CBP). This substantial influx has put considerable strain on resources in major sanctuary cities like New York City and Chicago, as well as in smaller towns in the Midwest, such as Springfield, Ohio.
Scott praised his former colleague for speaking out, acknowledging the risks involved in jeopardizing his income. Many retired agents refrain from voicing concerns because companies and contractors working with the federal government often seek to avoid the negative publicity associated with hiring whistleblowers, as noted by the retired Border Patrol chief.
“I think it’s very problematic that the administration is trying to hide so much relevant information from the public,” Scott said. “I’m very, very grateful that Chief Heitke stepped up and decided to share that information with the public because that really hurts his ability to get contract jobs in the future.”
“[Heitke is] not only taking a risk, he’s knowingly cutting his family’s income by standing up for what’s right,” he continued.
The Department of Homeland Security and the White House did not provide a comment to the DCNF when requested.
