The media have been quick to blame the Trump administration for parent child separation at the Mexico border. Today however, no self respecting, independent thinking person trusts any narrative the media tries to push. So after checking just a few facts, it was no surprise to me that this narrative is mostly false.
Why are children and parents being separated?
Current immigration law, passed decades ago states that entering the border illegally for the first time is a misdemeanor, and entering it a second time illegally is a felony. The consequence of prosecuting the adults results in temporarily separating them from minors they may have arrived with into separate facilities. This has been happening for decades, including under Obama, if you do not believe this, here is an entire gallery of pictures of detention centers under Obama.
http://dailycaller.com/2018/06/19/photos-obama-immigration-detention-facilities/
Did Trump specifically change something?
The family detention system has a certain max capacity of about 2700. Under the Obama administration, over capacity usually resulted in catch and release. The change that Trump made is to enforce the immigration laws with zero tolerance. The decision to enforce immigration laws and the recent increase of family unit arrivals has lead to the current issue.
Why mostly false?
Whether you agree with the immigration law or not, prosecuting illegal entry into the US is not new. Detention of children while a guardian is found for them is not new. Not enforcing the law is not valid policy. The situation was setup and ignored by previous administrations. Trump administration however is not completely innocent as they did increase enforcement without first addressing the underlining problems.
