The Trump administration recently enacted a new immigration policy. This policy may have several purposes — some obvious and others less visible.
The Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security and the White House put this new immigration policy into place. It is not a law. The new policy may be intended to deter people from other countries from entering the United States illegally. It is also very likely intended to deter people being persecuted from seeking asylum in the United States.
On May 7, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a speech, announcing the new policy in Scottsdale, Arizona, “If you’re smuggling a child, then we’re going to prosecute you, and that child will be separated from you, probably, as required by law. If you don’t want your child separated, then don’t bring them across the border illegally. It’s not our fault that somebody does that.”
Please note that he said, “…that child will be separated from you, probably, as required by law.” He did not say, “as required by law,” but “probably, as required by law.” He inserted that qualifier because he knows there is no law requiring separation of children and parents at the border.
The new policy has had some dramatic impact. According to Vox reporting, “Between October 1, 2017 and May 31, 2018, at least 2,700 children have been split from their parents. 1,995 of them were separated over the last six weeks of that window — April 18 to May 31 — indicating that at present, an average of 45 children are being taken from their parents each day.
Under U.S. law, entering the country illegally is a crime. This is true. The Trump administration determined that as part of its new “zero tolerance policy,” it will prosecute all illegal entry attempts. The Trump administration has also decided that implementing this new policy will include detention of adults and separation of adults from children accompanying them.
Unfortunately, Trump has tried to blame Democrats for this new policy enacted by his administration. This is yet another of Trump’s lies. According to reporting by NPR, former President Barack Obama domestic policy director Cecilia Muñoz said that separating children from their parents was not a policy the Obama administration followed.
“The Obama administration did not do that, no. We did not separate children from their parents,” Muñoz said. “This is a new decision, a policy decision put in place by the attorney general.” Muñoz said the policy “puts us in league with the most brutal regimes in the world’s history.
One may also wonder if there is another fully intentional purpose of this new policy. The policy’s purpose may be to distract media attention from the ongoing Trump Campaign-Russian conspiracy investigation. Perhaps the policy’s true purpose is to provide that distraction.
Legislators proposed a couple of pieces of immigration legislation this week. We will see if either legislation receives a floor vote. Don’t hold your breath on that — it’s very unlikely.