THANK YOU BOTH SO MUCH FOR BEING
HERE TODAY.
WE DO HAVE SOME BREAKING NEWS
NOW ON THE ISSUE OF MIGRANT
CHILDREN SEPARATED FROM THEIR
PARENTS.
THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT INSPECTOR
GENERAL JUST OUT WITH A NEW
REPORT ON THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION’S SEPARATION
POLICIES.
NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENTS JACOB
SOBOROFF AND JULIA AINSLEY ARE
JOINING US NOW.
THEY’VE BEEN ON THIS JOINTLY FOR
THE LAST FOUR YEARS.
JACOB, WHAT ARE YOU LEARNING?
>> WELL, ANDREA, A COUPLE
THINGS.
ONE IS I WANT TO SAY THAT THIS
REPORT CONFIRMS OUR EARLIER
REPORTING THAT NOT ONLY DID
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES KNOW
ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES OF FAMILY
SEPARATIONS, THE TREMENDOUS
TRAUMA AND CONSEQUENCES OF
FAMILY SEPARATIONS, NOT ONLY DID
THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY KNOW, BUT THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE WAS
WARNED.
THEY DID NOT COORDINATE WITH
CAREER PROSECUTORS ON THE
GROUND.
MORE IMPORTANTLY, DOJ PRESSURED
DHS TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS
POLICY.
PERHAPS MOST SIGNIFICANTLY,
THAT’S ME LOOKING AT THE
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS ULTIMATELY
OF SEPARATED CHILDREN,
ULTIMATELY WHAT WE’RE SEEING
HERE IS THAT GENE HAMILTON,
COUNSELOR TO JEFF SESSIONS, WHO
WAS THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AT THE
TIME, DIRECTLY BLAMES THE
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
AND THEN SECRETARY OF HOMELAND
SECURITY KIRSTJEN NIELSEN FOR
MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS POLICY.
I HAVE THE REPORT HERE.
I WANT TO READ A BIT TO YOU.
HE SAYS EXPLICITLY, I WANT TO
MAKE SURE I’M CLEAR THAT IF
SECRETARY NIELSEN AND DACHSZHS D
NOT WANT TO REFER PEOPLE WITH
MINORS, CHILDREN, WE WOULDN’T
HAVE PROSECUTED THEM BECAUSE
THEY WOULDN’T HAVE REFERRED
THEM.
ULTIMATELY, THAT DECISION WOULD
BE BETWEEN SECRETARY NIELSEN AND
THE PRESIDENT, NOT THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.
SO VERY EXPLICIT FINGER POINTING
FROM A CLOSE ALLY OF STEVEN
MILLER AT THE PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES DIRECTLY FOR
MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS POLICY
THAT ULTIMATELY SEPARATED
THOUSANDS OF MIGRANT CHILDREN
FROM THEIR PARENTS.
WE’RE STILL GOING THROUGH THE
REPORT RIGHT NOW, ZRAANDREA.
>> JULIA, ROD ROSENSTEIN, HAS HE
RESPONDED TO THIS REPORT?
>> YES, HE HAS.
AND HE IS NAMED IN THIS REPORT
QUITE A FEW TIMES.
JACOB MENTIONS THE PRESSURE FROM
DOJ.
THERE WAS AN APRIL 28th MEETING
WHERE ROSENSTEIN, SESSIONS, AND
HAMILTON SAT DOWN WITH THEN
SECRETARY KIRSTJEN NIELSEN
SAYING THE DHS NEEDED TO START
SEPARATING FAMILIES BECAUSE THEY
WANTED TO INCREASE PROSECUTIONS
AT THE BORDER.
ROSENSTEIN HAS RESPONDED AND I’M
GOING TO READ YOU HIS FULL
STATEMENT BECAUSE I THINK IT
SAYS A LOT ABOUT THE WAY THE
FORMER DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL
IS REVIEWING HIS TIME UNDER THIS
ADMINISTRATION IN WHOLE.
HE SAYS, "MY DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE COLLEAGUES AND I FACE
UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGES, UNLIKE
ANY I HAD EXPERIENCED SERVING AS
A U.S. ATTORNEY UNDER PRESIDENTS
BUSH AND OBAMA.
I STAYED IN THE JOB TWO YEARS TO
HELP PROTECT THE INTEGRITY OF
ELECTIONS, DEFEND IF RULE OF LAW
AND PRESERVE THE DEPARTMENT’S
INDEPENDENCE.
SINCE LEAVING THE DEPARTMENT
I’VE OFTEN ASKED MYSELF WHAT WE
SHOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY AND
NO ISSUE HAS DOMINATED MY
THINKING MORE THAN A
ZERO-TOLERANCE IMMIGRATION
POLICY.
IT WAS A FAILED POLICY THAT
NEVER SHOULD HAVE BEEN PROPOSED
OR IMPLEMENTED.
I WISH WE HAD ALL DONE BETTER."
THAT’S COMING FROM FORMER DEPUTY
ATTORNEY GENERAL ROD ROSENSTEIN.
REALLY, HIS RESPONSE IS QUITE
STRIKING.
AFTER YOU READ THIS REPORT AND
SEE WHAT A ROLE HE HAD, THERE
WERE U.S. ATTORNEYS AT THE
BORDER, DRAEANDREA, CALLING THE
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT, GETTING ON
PHONE CALLS WITH ROSENSTEIN,
SAYING HOW YOUNG IS TOO YOUNG?
WE’RE SEEING MOTHERS
BREAST-FEEDING THEIR CHILDREN
COME INTO OUR COURTROOMS AND
THEY WERE TOLD BY THE DEPUTY
ATTORNEY GENERAL NO AGE IS TOO
YOUNG TO SEPARATE AND PROSECUTE.
>> WOW.
LET’S YOU SAY, JACOB, WHAT ABOUT
THESE FAMILIES THAT ARE STILL
SEPARATED?
>> IT’S A CRITICAL QUESTION.
I’M GLAD YOU ASKED.
JUST YESTERDAY WE FOUND OUT --
JUST YESTERDAY WE FOUND OUT THE
LATEST NUMBER, THE MOST RECENT
NUMBER.
THERE ARE STILL -- THIS IS WHY
THIS IS SO IMPORTANT.
THERE ARE STILL 611 FAMILIES
SEPARATED AT THE HEIGHT OF THIS
POLICY.
SOME WERE SEPARATED MORE THAN
THREE YEARS AGO.
WHO THE GOVERNMENT STILL HAS NOT
BEEN ABLE TO LOCATE.
611.
ULTIMATELY, THAT’S BECAUSE THE
LAWYERS SAY THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION HANDLED OVER BAD
DATA, FAULTY DATA.
AND SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT, YOU
KNOW, WHY IS THIS REPORT ALL
THESE YEARS LATER IMPORTANT,
THAT YOU HAVE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
OFFICIALS FINGERING THE
PRESIDENT DIRECTLY AS
RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS POLICY, THE
CONSEQUENCES OF THE POLICY FOR
THE FAMILIES ARE STILL PLAYING
OUT ON A DAILY BASIS.
THE TRAUMA IS BEING COMPOUNDED.
THE IDEA THAT THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT STILL CAN’T FIND 611
OF THOSE FAMILIES, LITERALLY GET
THEM ON THE PHONE, IS WHAT IS AT
THE HEART OF ALL OF THIS.
>> AND THE LIVES THAT ARE BEING
AFFECTED FOR THE REST OF THEIR
LIVES, THE CHILDREN AS WELL AS
THE PARENTS.
>> THAT’S RIGHT.
.
>> JACOB SOBOROFF, YOU’VE
WRITTEN THE BOOK ON THIS.