‘People Will Pay’: Biden Promises Consequences For Agents Accused Of Whipping Migrants

President Joe Biden said Friday agents accused of whipping Haitian migrants “will pay” and that “there will be consequences.”

“I take responsibility. I’m president … It was horrible to see. To see people treated like they did, horses nearly running them over, people being strapped. It’s outrageous,” the president said during an address on COVID-19 booster shots. “I promise you those people will pay… There will be consequences.”

“Of course I take responsibility, I’m president.”

Pres. Joe Biden tells @rachelvscott the controversial handling of Haitian immigrants “sends the wrong message around the world,” claiming “there will be consequences.” https://t.co/kx01LNbaNT pic.twitter.com/o3kDDt5Giq

— ABC News (@ABC) September 24, 2021

“It’s an embarrassment, but it’s beyond an embarrassment, it’s dangerous, it’s wrong. It sends the wrong message around the world. It sends the wrong message at home. It’s simply not who we are,” Biden stated.

Video emerged Monday appearing to show Border Patrol agents on horseback in Del Rio trying to manage the onslaught of Haitian migrants who were trying to illegally enter the U.S. In the video, agents could be seen swinging what appears to be horse reins in the air as migrants try to rush past them.

Still images taken looked as though migrants were about to be whipped. Neither the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) nor the White House could confirm or deny the reports. (RELATED: Democrats, Media Accuse Border Patrol Of ‘Whipping’ Haitian Migrants)

The photographer who took the photos that appeared to show migrants near agents with their reins in the air said he never saw migrants being whipped, according to Fox’s National Correspondent Bill Melugin.

NEW: The photographer who took the now infamous photos of mounted Border Patrol agents in Del Rio says he and his colleagues never saw agents whipping anyone and the photos are being misconstrued.
However, the false narrative is off and running. @FoxNews https://t.co/scwhoqOqYS

— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) September 24, 2021

A Border Patrol source told Townhall agents often spin their reins to deter migrants from getting too close to horses.

“Agents use their reins for a lot of reasons. Primarily it’s used to steer the horse, but agents will also spin them sometimes to deter people from getting too close to the horse. If they get too close, the horse can step on them, breaking bones or causing other injuries.”

The agents accused of “whipping” the migrants were reassigned to desk duties. White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced Thursday horses would be prohibited from being used in Del Rio, Texas.

The Department of Homeland Security is investigating the allegations., with the agency saying in a statement Thursday, it “does not tolerate the abuse of migrants in our custody and we take these allegations very seriously.”