New Proposal Could Separate Families Crossing Border
The Department of Homeland Security is considering a proposal that would break up families caught together illegally entering the United States by separating women and children, Reuters reported Friday afternoon, citing three anonymous government officials who had been briefed on the proposal. The proposal is apparently aimed, in part, at deterring mothers from crossing with their children.
The policy would allow officials to put children into protective custody with the Department of Health and Human Services while parents are detained as they are contesting deportation or waiting for an asylum hearing. Children could eventually be sent to family in the U.S. or to a state-sponsored guardian.
President Donald Trump has previously called for ending the so-called "catch and release" system in which immigrants caught crossing the border illegally are allowed to live in the U.S. for the time being, until their case is resolved.
Trump campaigned on hard-line stances on immigration. Since taking office, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has carried out raids, purportedly targeting violent criminals although critics have argued that has not been the case.
"Despite saying he’d only target dangerous criminals, President Trump’s executive orders target practically every undocumented person in California," California Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León, D-Los Angeles, said in a statement. "The lack of transparency by ICE is creating havoc and confusion in communities across the state and that has to change. It’s time for ICE to come clean on what they’re doing and how they intend to operate going forward."
But Trump has also reportedly expressed a willingness to consider a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. A White House official told CNN that if Democrats are willing to work with Trump they could get some sort of reform done.
"There's got to be a coming together," the official said.
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