Vice President “border man” Kamala Harris traveled to Houston, Texas, where she chose to attend a teachers’ conference dinner instead of visiting the grieving parents of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nangaray, who was allegedly raped and murdered by two migrants.
Nungaray was found strangled to death on June 17. Authorities identified the suspects as Venezuelan nationals Johan Jose Martinez Rangel, 21, and Franklin Jose Peña Ramos, 26.
Authorities have already confirmed that the two entered the United States illegally earlier this year.
Harris’ visit to Houston comes just as the vice president kicks off a whirlwind campaign after President Biden announced he would not seek reelection.
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Vice President Kamala Harris addresses members of the American Federation of Teachers at the George R. Brown Convention Center, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Houston. (Conley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Jocelyn Nangaray, 12, was found strangled to death in a creek in Houston. (Courtesy of Fox Houston and the Nungarei Family)
Harris first greeted local leaders and heard about the area’s recovery efforts following Hurricane Beryl, before attending the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) annual conference.
“I also want to thank them for their support over the years and for being the first union to endorse me this week,” Harris said.
The American Federation of Teachers was the first labor union to endorse Harris since she announced her presidential candidacy. (Montinique Monroe/Getty Images)
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Harris’ speech highlighted key talking points of the campaign, including staples of the Democratic platform, such as eliminating voter ID in order to expand mail-in voting, banning assault rifles, protecting LGBTQ+ rights and restoring nationwide access to abortion.
“Right now, across our country, we are witnessing an all-out assault on our hard-won and hard-fought freedoms,” Harris said.
“Right now, we’re fighting for our most basic freedoms. And I say to the leaders in this room: Do it, do it, do it.”
Alexis Nungaray, Jocelyn Nungaray’s mother, speaks after Pena Ramos’ June 24, 2024 court appearance. (Crive)
Notably, Harris’ trip did not include a visit to Nungaray’s grieving parents, who have been calling for a “safer country” since Nungaray’s death and for increased border security to prevent other families from suffering the same fate.
“We have to stop burying our children,” Jocelyn’s mother, Alexis Nangaray, told “Hannity” through tears. “This is wrong. We have to step up in how we let people in. This is not acceptable.”
Jocelyn’s grandfather, Kelvin Alvarenga Directly to lawmakers.
“Think of these little angels who should never have been taken.”
“I just want those who can change the law to just sit back and think,” Alvarenga said. “I don’t know if I can convey through a camera the pain that we’re feeling, but please sit back and think and think about these little angels that should never have been taken. They were taken because we’re not doing the necessary thing to test these people.”
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event at Westover High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on July 18, 2024. (Alison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images)
“Vetting these people” falls within Harris’ responsibilities as the Biden administration’s “border official.”
“Border Czar” is an unofficial title widely bestowed on Harris in 2021. Biden He appointed her to address the “root causes” of illegal immigration.
In July 2021, she Five Basic Strategies The plan was to combat the “root causes” of illegal immigration. The plan did not include specific policies, but instead called for “diplomacy, foreign aid, public diplomacy, and sanctions” to “establish a fair, orderly, and humane immigration system.”
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The document highlighted the “driving” factors for migration in Central America, including natural disasters, poverty, hunger and gang violence, that cause people to leave their homes in search of a better life.
“The root causes of migration in Central America run deep, and migration from the region has a direct impact on the United States,” Harris said at the time. “That’s why the United States must continue to work with the region to address the challenges that are driving people to leave Central America and come to our border.”
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The Biden administration has objected to classifying Harris as “secretary for border affairs,” saying the vice president has never been formally given that title.
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“[Border apprehensions] “His approval rating is down 55 percent. It’s not because of the Republican Party, it’s because of their actions. It’s because of the actions of the current president and the current vice president,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told Fox News’ Peter Doocy when asked about Harris’ title.
“We’re going to debunk this false portrayal of the vice president. She was not a border patrol officer. And we’re not alone. Independent fact checkers are saying the same thing. It never happened and it’s not true.”
Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks at the Republican National Convention at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on July 17, 2024. (Reuters/Callahan O’Hare)
Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott slammed Harris’ visit to Houston, saying he “cannot go to the trouble of visiting the southern border.”
“Kamala Harris flew to Houston for a political rally but couldn’t bring herself to travel hundreds of miles to see the damage being done to the border,” Abbott wrote. Post by X.
“She refused to mention Jocelyn Nangaray, who was recently murdered by an illegal immigrant in Houston.”
Jocelyn Joana Toakiza had just turned 21 when she was murdered. (GoFundMe)
Nungaray is one of several victims killed in immigration-related crimes under the Biden administration.
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In July, John Moises Chacaguasay Irbis, 21, an illegal immigrant from Ecuador, allegedly murdered Joseline Joana Toaquiza at an Airbnb property in Syracuse, New York.
The brutal crime reportedly took place on the victim’s 21st birthday.
Laken Riley poses for a photo posted to Facebook after she was found dead near a lake on campus on Feb. 22, 2024, as a nursing student at the University of Georgia. (Allison Phillips/Facebook)
In February, 22-year-old Laken Riley was killed while running on a dirt path on the campus of the University of Georgia in Athens.
Jose Antonio IbarraThe 26-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela has been charged with 10 crimes following Riley’s death. The 26-year-old recently pleaded not guilty in the college student’s death.
Victor Martinez Hernandez, 23, was arrested on suspicion of murder in the death of Rachel Morin.
In August 2023, Maryland mother Rachel Morin was allegedly sexually assaulted and murdered by 23-year-old Salvadoran illegal immigrant Victor Antonio Martinez Hernandez.
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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to Fox News Digital that Hernandez had attempted to enter the country illegally four times after being charged with similar murder in his native El Salvador.
Hundreds of migrants attempt to cross the Mexico-US border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, March 29, 2024. (David Peinado/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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The ongoing border crisis has become a top issue for voters ahead of the November election. The Biden administration has pushed back against Republican criticism, Illegal immigrants crossing the border Since Biden announced an executive order restricting entry into the United States in June,
Fox News Digital has reached out to Harris’ campaign and the White House for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw, Anders Hagstrom and Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
