California gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra is leaning into his record on immigration and health care as he campaigns, but his recent boasts about “Dreamers” have reignited fierce attacks from his Republican opponent over his tenure as U.S. Health and Human Services secretary.
Becerra, who served as HHS secretary under the Biden administration, posted on social media that he expanded Affordable Care Act coverage to Dreamers while in office, arguing that President Donald Trump took that coverage away. “I’ll keep fighting for Dreamers and for health care for every Californian,” he wrote, according to PJ Media.
But the post drew immediate fire from Steve Hilton, Becerra’s Republican challenger in the gubernatorial race. Hilton responded with disgust, accusing Becerra of having “sent thousands of Latino children directly into the hands of child sex and labor traffickers” and of turning HHS into “the largest child trafficking operation in history.” Hilton concluded that Becerra is “not fit for any public office, let alone governor of this great state.”
Record Under Scrutiny
The criticism centers on Becerra’s time leading HHS, a period in which the department faced allegations it lost track of more than 300,000 migrant children. Critics, including PJ Media contributor Catherine Salgado, have accused Becerra of describing the processing of migrant children as an “assembly line” and of fueling child exploitation. Some have gone further, alleging a “mass money-laundering scheme” tied to the department’s handling of migrant minors.
Becerra has also faced criticism for skipping an event where California Hispanic voters wanted to ask questions and hear his policy plans, a move that some observers see as a miscalculation in a race where Hispanic voters could prove pivotal.
Despite the controversies, Becerra appears to be banking on his immigration record as a political asset, framing his support for Dreamers as a core part of his platform. The term “Dreamers” typically refers to undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, and Becerra’s post suggests he views that demographic as central to his base.
Critics, however, see the post as politically motivated. “He is boasting about healthcare for ‘dreamers’ because it is a requirement in the Democrat Party now to blather about illegal immigration,” Salgado wrote, adding that Becerra’s actions as HHS secretary undercut any claim to genuine concern for migrant children.
Election Context
The exchange comes as the California gubernatorial race heats up, with Hilton reportedly “steadily rising in the polls.” The contest has also been overshadowed by separate election-related developments, including the federal arrest of a Honduran national accused of voting illegally in California.
Salgado, who writes for PJ Media, The Rogue Review, and the Media Research Center, argued that Becerra’s bragging reflects a broader pattern of Democratic elitism, comparing the party’s modern treatment of migrant labor to its historical support for slavery. She suggested that without what she called election fraud in California, Becerra would be in serious danger of losing the race.
Becerra’s campaign has not directly responded to Hilton’s latest attacks, but the candidate’s emphasis on health care for Dreamers suggests he believes the issue will resonate with California voters, who have broadly supported immigrant-friendly policies in recent years.
Whether that strategy will hold against Hilton’s pointed assaults on Becerra’s HHS record remains to be seen, as both candidates compete for a state that remains deeply polarized on immigration and border policy.
Source: pjmedia.com — https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2026/08/29/child-trafficking-becerra-has-chutzpah-to-brag-about-migration-record-n4956670
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