Friday night my son and I were in Nashville for a weekend vacation trip. We arrived back at our hotel late in the evening after a ball game to witness a shocking event.

Pulling into the parking lot was a large, nondescript white bus with no identification. About 50 Hispanic kids streamed out and entered the front door of the hotel. They were milling about the lobby as we walked in – young teenagers, ages about 12 to 15, mostly girls and just a few delicate boys. My first thought was church group. But we saw no chaperones, just one surly-looking driver and two laborers unloading bags. A church group would not have young boys and girls with no moms.

None of them spoke English. They did not look like street kids – these were clean cut, innocent teens, clearly having recently visited a shopping mall to buy new fashionable shirts, shoes and bags. They were quiet, but not frightened. It appeared they were well-fed and cared for and they seemed to be happy travelers with pocket money.

As I took in the scene my gut told me something is not right here. These kids have no idea what is ahead of them. But before I could engage anybody or try to investigate, they were hustled off to their rooms.

The next morning, I was up early to check out the situation, but the bus and the kids were already gone before they would be noticed by other guests. I stopped to talk to the hotel manager and her assistant. I asked them about the busload of kids and wondered if they knew any details that might assuage my concerns. They were anxious to exchange thoughts about the situation. Both of them were young black moms, and they were also fearing the worst. One had experienced a kidnapping attempt with her own daughter, so she is especially tuned in.

“This is the second time this bus has come through,” the manager said. “A month ago the same guy brought another load through, different kids. He calls ahead and asks if we have ten rooms available. He pays in cash and said it is a church group, but I tried to look up the church and it doesn’t exist. They arrive very late and leave very early.”

We tossed around ideas for what to do if they see this guy again. They could call local police, or ICE, and identify the bus and driver if possible. One of the clerks speaks Spanish and could try to engage one or more of the kids. But this is a fast-moving, well-controlled operation.

Child trafficking is a burgeoning industry throughout the United States thanks to the Biden Administration’s open border policy and new government practices that aid and abet the evil providers and customers.

The New York Post reported last week that whistleblowers from the Office of Refugee Resettlement said the department is not vetting “sponsors” who are receiving minors who come across the border unattended:

“What I discovered was horrifying: children were being trafficked with billions of taxpayer dollars by a contractor failing to vet sponsors and process children safely, with government officials complicit in it,” Deborah White, a federal employee detailed to the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Resettlement, ORR, told Republicans during a roundtable co-hosted by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.).

The Post further reported that Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary Shevaun Harris told the senate panel that she found it “frightening” that less than 10% of children apprehended crossing the border are being released to their parents. “It defies logic and is inhumane,” Harris said.

Last year a Newsweek report said “85,000 + illegal migrant children have gone ‘missing’ according to DHS Since Biden took office. MSM [mainstream media] didn’t report on this fact, why?” (That number is, of course, much larger now).

If you didn’t have a good reason to stop voting for Democrats before, perhaps you do now.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

No clever song with this one. It’s just too sad and serious.