California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton launched a $1 million advertising campaign Friday accusing rival Xavier Becerra of failing to protect unaccompanied migrant children, drawing a sharp response from Becerra’s campaign, which dismissed the artificial intelligence-generated advertisement as “AI slop.”

Hilton’s campaign announced the 30-second advertisement, titled “Assembly Line,” which depicts dolls moving along a production line to criticize Becerra’s handling of migrant children while serving as U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services.

The advertisement, which includes a disclosure that it was generated or substantially altered using AI, is scheduled to run across digital, text, and streaming platforms during the final two weeks of the governor’s race.

Hilton Accuses Becerra of Weakening Child Protections

Hilton’s campaign pointed to New York Times reporting that found Becerra’s department reduced safeguards, including some background checks, while attempting to accelerate the release of migrant children from federal shelters.

The Times also reported that Becerra pushed employees to release children more quickly, at one point telling staff: “This is not the way you do an assembly line.”

“Xavier Becerra was responsible for protecting these children. Instead, his department weakened safeguards while he pushed staff to move children like products on an assembly line,” Hilton said. “He owes Californians answers.”

Hilton’s campaign also claimed that 479,000 unaccompanied children entered the department’s custody during Becerra’s tenure and that officials could not account for 319,000 after their release.

The campaign further alleged that about 140,000 children remain missing, including 100,000 younger than 13.

A 2024 report from the Office of Inspector General corroborates those numbers, though a failure to account for children in federal tracking systems does not necessarily establish that they are missing.

Becerra Campaign Hits Back at Hilton

Becerra’s campaign responded Tuesday by criticizing Hilton’s use of artificial intelligence and accusing him of attempting to shift attention away from his relationship with President Donald Trump.

“All the AI slop in the world can’t hide Steve Hilton’s cozy relationship with Trump. And blaming Becerra for a border crisis Trump created is certainly easier for Steve than defending his own ridiculous platform,” Becerra campaign spokesperson Jonathan Underland said in a statement to GV Wire.

Hilton, meanwhile, framed the advertisement as an effort to hold Becerra accountable for decisions made during his tenure overseeing the federal department.

“California families know what happens when government stops caring about results and stops caring about people,” Hilton said. “We need a government that treats every person with dignity, demands accountability and always puts the safety of children ahead of protecting politicians.”

The exchange comes as both candidates make their final appeals to voters ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm election.

OIG Reports Nearly 500,000 Children Unaccounted for

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General during President Joe Biden’s tenure said in a 2024 report that under Becerra, the Department of Health and Human Services and ICE had not adequately protected children during immigration enforcement.

“This alert informs you of an urgent issue we discovered during an ongoing audit and the actions ICE has taken to address the issues,” a letter from Inspector General Joseph Cuffari in 2024 states. “Specifically, we found ICE cannot always monitor the location and status of unaccompanied migrant children who are released from DHS and HHS custody.”

In 2008, the federal government tasked both Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, and the Department of Justice with creating plans to follow up with unaccompanied migrant children to protect them from trafficking or other harm.

That accountability fell apart in 2023 when ICE could not follow up with 323,000 children released from Health and Human Services’ care.

Hilton in August accused Becerra of prioritizing political appearances over care of children.

“Becerra not only failed to protect the children in his care, he actively put them at risk,” Hilton said at the time. “At risk of child sex trafficking, at risk of child labor exploitation, at risk of simply disappearing.”

(GV Wire’s Edward Smith contributed to this story.)

—

Connect with Anthony W. Haddad on social media. Got a tip? Send an email.