LG Beckwith’s Haitian Asylum-Seeker Post Sparks Conservative Backlash

Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith on Friday landed himself in hot water with supporters over social media posts about Haitian asylum-seekers.

Beckwith, a pastor at Life Church’s Noblesville campus, met with Haitian pastors on Thursday to talk about “faith and family.”

“Their people have endured earthquakes and violence, and now more than 40,000 are seeking asylum here in Indiana,” he wrote on X. “We spoke about barriers of language and culture while also discussing the power of faith and family.”

“What I saw was not a community asking for a handout, but people determined to work hard, raise their children to become contributors to the great Hoosier state, and assimilate to the American way of life,” he added.

His office told the Capital Chronicle that immigration was a small part of the discussion, and that Beckwith supports the end of temporary protected status for Haiti. In comments on X, he also said he directed the pastors to encourage self-deportation for any congregants in Indiana illegally.

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X users swarmed to the comment section, accusing Beckwith of trying to bring 40,000 Haitian nationals to Indiana. Some called for his deportation to Haiti.

Conservative news figures from across the country amplified the post.

Beckwith backtracked, at first.

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Then, he turned off the comments to his official X account and deleted his original post and replies. {snip}

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