DETROIT, MI -- U.S. Rep. Candace Miller (R-Harrison Twp.) on Tuesday called for the withdrawal of foreign aid to Central America, suggesting Detroit as a more beneficial destination.

Miller, vice chairwoman of the House Homeland Security Committee and head of subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security, wrote a letter to President Barack Obama accusing Central American nations of "doing little to nothing to stop the illegal smuggling of children" into the U.S.

"They are putting their own children at great risk and overwhelming our security operations at our southern border, increasing the possibility of illicit drug activity by dangerous cartels which operate along the border," wrote Miller, who represents parts of Macomb County and the Thumb region north of Detroit.

"For decades, our nation has sent untold amounts of foreign aid to these countries and joined in free trade agreements giving these nations enhanced access to our markets in the hope that they could build growing economies and stronger civil societies in part to stem the flow of illegal migration to those nations."

She said in a separate statement that the funds could instead be sent to Detroit.

“Examples of what our USAID is being used for in the Centrals include helping civil society programs, climate change, and addressing the gender gap in education and the workforce," she said.

"We’d be better off spending this money in the inner cities of America. We can start with Detroit. No more money from America until they step up their own responsibilities and stop their citizens from illegally migrating to the U.S."

She specifically named Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras as having received about $5.8 billion in U.S. financial assistance over the last 10 years.

She described a rise in the number of unaccompanied Central American children attempting to enter U.S. as a humanitarian crisis, blaming it on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy implemented by the Obama administration in 2012.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said Tuesday that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has picked up more than 52,000 unaccompanied children at the southern border this fiscal year, most from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.

He listed 13 measures being taken to address the issue, including moving 115 additional CPB agents to the Rio Grande Valley.

Johnson also issued a letter "to parents of children crossing the southwest border."

"It is dangerous to send a child on the long journey from Central America to the United States," he wrote. "The criminal smuggling networks that you pay to deliver your child to the United States have no regard for his or her safety and well-being – to them, your child is a commodity to be exchanged for a payment...

"The desire to see a child have a better life in the United States is understandable. But, the risks of illegal migration by an unaccompanied child to achieve that dream are far too great, and the 'permisos' do not exist."