Nearly a year before a flood of unaccompanied children from Central America created a crisis along the border, the Obama administration was warned that the U.S. was not adequately prepared for such a situation, the Washington Post reports.
A team of Border Patrol agents was assigned to the Fort Brown patrol station in Brownsville, Tex., and was alarmed by the potential for problems.
This year, more than 57,000 Central American migrants were caught entering the U.S. illegally, and President Obama has declared a humanitarian crisis.
The administration could have better managed the problem had it acted soon, the Post found during interviews with experts and former government officials.
Victor Manjarrez Jr., a former Border Patrol station chief, said the crisis was “not on anyone’s radar” and was considered a “local problem.”
