U.S. Border Patrol deactivates its West Texas Twitter account after it retweets Stephen Miller

U.S. Customs and Border Control deactivated one of its official Twitter accounts over the weekend after it retweeted content from former Trump White House advisor Stephen Miller and liked a tweet making a homophobic remark about Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, according to Axios.

In a statement shared Saturday via Twitter, CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus said officials were aware of inappropriate content posted on the account of its West Texas Division and had referred the matter to the Office of Professional Responsibility for investigation.

Among the posts from immigration hardliner Miller retweeted by the West Texas regional office on Saturday were claims that "violent criminals" were laying waste to American communities and that the Biden Administration's "eradication of the border" was putting an end to "250 years of constitutional government."

What is up with the @CBPWestTexas Twitter feed right now? This is one of the most egregious examples I’ve ever seen of a US federal law enforcement agency defying elected political leadership in official communications. pic.twitter.com/iON2AmqPqs

— Adam Isacson (@adam_wola) September 10, 2022

The account also liked a tweet that referred to Buttigieg — the first openly gay Cabinet member in U.S. history — as "Pete Buttplug," according to news outlet El Paso Matters.

What's more, the account has shared right-wing content dating back to July, according to El Paso Matters.

"The person running the @CBPWestTexas media account has absolutely no business being in public service," El Paso Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, a Democrat, tweeted on Saturday. "Especially if allowed to carry a gun and a badge."

The person running the @CBPWestTexas media account has absolutely no business being in public service. Especially if allowed to carry a gun and a badge. https://t.co/Nip81qMg9u

— Veronica Escobar (@vgescobar) September 11, 2022

The offensive tweets are only the latest controversy for CBP.

In June, CBP came under fire after it was reported that Border Patrol "challenge coins" were being sold, which depicted the September 2021 incident in Del Rio where mounted agents charged Haitian migrants on horseback with whips.

In 2019, an investigation by nonprofit news outlet ProPublica unveiled a secret Facebook page for current and former Border Patrol agents the included posts joking about the deaths of migrants and sexist memes of Latina lawmakers.

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