Brave Texas Army National Guard member Specialist Bishop E. Evans tragically drowned on April 22 saving the lives of two illegal aliens attempting to cross the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas. Despite creating the very crisis that put Evans there, the Biden administration has shrugged off any and all responsibility for the 22-year-old’s death.
Evans joined the National Guard in 2019 and had also served in Iraq and Kuwait. Evans was known as a positive, fun-loving, and selfless young man, known by friends and family for his unequivocal desire to help others in need. He surely wanted to help these illegal aliens who he observed to be in danger.
Later, it was confirmed by Texas Rangers that the two aliens (who did survive, thanks to the bravery and sacrifice of Evans) were involved in “illicit transnational narcotics trafficking.”
Sadly, unlike the illegal criminals, Bishop Evans did not survive the incident. His body was recovered on April 25, and now his family is grieving his loss.
When asked about Evans’ death on April 25, White House press secretary Jen Psaki was less than upfront and compassionate; in fact, all she did was deflect blame.
Besides saying that she has “no update” on whether President Joe Biden plans to reach out to the Evans family and offering that the administration’s “hearts go out” to them, Psaki shirked the White House’s responsibility in true Biden administration fashion. When asked if the White House feels any responsibility for Evans’ death, Psaki responded by passing the blame to Texas for sending the National Guard to the border.
Of course, what Psaki deliberately failed to mention was that Texas (like other states) has been forced to send its National Guard to the border to assist the overworked, underfunded Border Patrol during the worst border crisis in history.
In March alone, U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered more than 221,000 aliens at the border. It is without needed resources and feels abandoned by the Biden administration’s leadership. With the Biden administration having cut CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement funding drastically, it’s no wonder Texas has had to call up the National Guard.
The Biden administration’s blatant disregard for its responsibility is all too commonplace.
Last year, when the Biden administration falsely accused Border Patrol agents of “whipping” illegal aliens in Del Rio, Texas, their names and titles were smeared and careers undoubtedly affected. To this day, Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and administration officials refuse to acknowledge their error or issue an apology to Border Patrol.
Let’s also not forget the reports of Biden himself checking his watch during the homecoming of the Marines, Navy medic, and Army soldier killed in Afghanistan or the reports of him rolling his eyes and turning his back on one grieving mother.
This, all after his reckless handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal that cost those 13 American service members their lives and triggered a massive influx of unvetted evacuees from the region, further exasperating the incredible strain on our immigration system and law enforcement due to the border crisis.
Even Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas continually shifts blame for the border crisis and lies to the American people, telling them “the border is secure” when the data clearly shows otherwise.
Biden and his administration fail to support and protect those who serve our country and communities on a regular basis. They do so at the expense of American law enforcement and the military’s honor and very lives.
This latest Biden administration reaction to a brave service member’s death, as Texas tries to mitigate the border crisis Biden’s policies created, is a frustrating reminder of how little the president and the left care about those who put their lives on the line every day to protect us.
Shame on the Biden administration for its lack of respect for Specialist Bishop E. Evans and the men and women who have died in service at the border. They deserved better.
This piece originally appeared in The Daily Signal
