Homeland Dems to McCaul: Join Us in Calling for Trump to End Child Separation Policy
(WASHINGTON) – Today, the twelve Democratic members of the House Committee on Homeland Security, led by Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), sent a letter to Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) to urge him to call for the end of President Trump’s child separation policy.
Letter excerpts:
Over Father’s Day weekend, many of us visited facilities along our Nation’s southern border that are holding children separated from their parents due to the Trump Administration’s so-called “zero-tolerance policy.” We write to urge you and our Republican colleagues on the Committee on Homeland Security to join with us in calling on the President to put an immediate end to his inhumane and ineffective policy.
Unfortunately, like the President, the Secretary also attempted to shift the blame for the Administration’s actions to Congress. The American people will not be fooled. There is no law that requires children to be taken away from their parents while they seek asylum in the U.S. The President himself can put an end to separating families as quickly as he started it. Unfortunately, he has so far refused to do so. Instead, he is using these children as leverage to try to influence the ongoing immigration debate.
Meanwhile, leaders from many faiths and denominations, children’s welfare organizations, the American Academy of Pediatrics, all living former First Ladies, respected national security officials, and a host of other prominent people and groups have expressed concern about the Trump Administration’s policy and the harm it is causing vulnerable children. We stand with them in their support for the children and know that to remain silent is to be complicit in the Administration’s actions.
While we do not agree on every issue, our Committee prides itself on coming together on a bipartisan basis to find agreement wherever possible. Surely, we can agree that families belong together. Again, we urge you to join us in calling on President Trump to halt immediately his Administration’s practice of separating families at the border.
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