Ted Poe: “In the United States, throughout this entire land, there are 3,500 shelters--3,500 shelters--and these shelters are…”

“In the United States, throughout this entire land, there are 3,500 shelters--3,500 shelters--and these shelters are animal shelters. According to the Humane Society, there are at least 3,500 animal shelters in our Nation rescuing those animals, primarily dogs and cats, and making sure that they have some safety. I have dalmatians. In fact, one of my dalmatians was from a shelter, Dalmatian Rescue in Dallas, Texas, is where I got it. Three thousand five hundred. Bear that number in mind, Mr. Speaker, because in the same United States of America there are five shelters--five--for minor sex trafficked victims in this country. Fifty beds in the whole Nation is what I understand that there are to take care of minors, primarily young girls who are trafficked throughout the United States for sexual pleasure. Maybe we have gotten our priorities out of sync. You know, sex trafficking is nothing more than modern day slavery, and it is an epidemic in some parts of the world, and it even is coming to the United States. It's that crime to me that no one wants to talk about. I spent a lot of time at the courthouse in Houston, Texas, as a prosecutor in felony court, as a criminal court judge for 22 years, and I heard a lot of cases. But this case of someone kidnapping a minor child and transporting them across the United States for sex slavery is one of those cases that is difficult to understand why it occurs in this Nation.…”