JO >>> HUNDREDS OF CHILDREN STILL
REMAIN SEPARATED FROM THEIR
PARENTS ACCORDING TO NEW COURT
DOCUMENTS FILED BY THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION.
ADMINISTRATION. OF THE 2,654 CHILDREN SEPARATED
FROM THEIR FAMILIES AT THE
U.S./MEXICO BORDER, 497 REMAIN
IN THE GOVERNMENT’S CARE.
PARENTS OF 322 OF THESE CHILDREN
HAVE ALREADY BEEN DEPORTED.
THE ADMINISTRATION SAID THE
PARENTS OF 167 CHILDREN GAVE UP
THE RIGHT TO REUNIFICATION.
HOWEVER, THE ACLU STRONGLY
DISPUTES THAT CLAIM, SAYING SOME
PARENTS MAY HAVE BEEN COERCED OR
MISLED.
MISLED. MEANWHILE, CONGRESSIONAL
MEANWHILE, CONGRESSIONAL DEMOCRATS ARE CALLING FOR A
HEARING OVER REPORTS THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION IS QUESTIONING
THE CITIZENSHIP OF HUNDREDS,
POSSIBLY THOUSANDS OF HISPANIC
AMERICANS ALONG THE SOUTHERN
BORDER AND DENYING THEM
PASSPORTS.
PASSPORTS. "THE WASHINGTON POST" REPORTS
THAT THE GOVERNMENT IS DENYING
PASSPORTS TO PEOPLE WITH U.S.
BIRTH CERTIFICATES IN SOUTH
TEXAS, ALLEGING THAT DECADES
AGO, MIDWIVES AND SOME DOCTORS
IN THE REGION PROVIDED
FRAUDULENT BIRTH CERTIFICATES TO
BABIES WHO WERE BORN IN MEXICO.
STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON
HEATHER NAUERT RESPONDED TO THE
REPORT TWEETING, THE TRUTH IS,
DOMESTIC PASSPORT DENIALS FOR
SO-CALLED MIDWIFE CASES HAVE
ACTUALLY DECREASED DURING THE
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. THE DEPARTMENT HAS DECLINED TO
PROVIDE INFORMATION TO "THE
POST" ABOUT THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE
IT HAS DENIED PASSPORTS DUE TO
QUESTIONS SURROUNDING FRAUDULENT
BIRTH CERTIFICATES.
BIRTH CERTIFICATES. JOINING US NOW, MEMBER OF THE
FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND INTELLIGENCE
COMMITTEES, DEMOCRATIC
COMMITTEES, DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN, JOAQUIN CASTRO OF
TEXAS.
TEXAS. GOOD TO HAVE YOU ON BOARD.
>> THANKS FOR HAVING ME.
>> SO WHERE DO WE BEGIN?
I GUESS I’LL START WITH THE
CHILDREN WHO WERE SEPARATED FROM
THEIR FAMILIES, FAMILIES THAT
HAVE BEEN DEPORTED OR WHO HAVE
SOMEHOW GIVEN UP THAT YOU AREEIR
WHICH I QUESTION THAT IN MANY
DIFFERENT WAYS, HOW THAT
ACTUALLY TRANSPIRED.
ACTUALLY TRANSPIRED. WHAT CAN BE DONE TO FIX THIS
DAMAGE THAT HAS BEEN DONE?
ANYTHING?
ANYTHING? >> WELL, YOU’RE RIGHT.
THIS IS A HUMANITARIAN CRISIS.
IT’S TRAGIC.
IT’S TRAGIC. >> YES.
>> YES. >> THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
STARTED SEPARATING YOUNG KIDS
FROM THEIR PARENTS WITH NO PLANS
TO REUNIFY THEM.
AND THAT’S WHAT MAKES THIS
ESPECIALLY CRUEL.
ESPECIALLY CRUEL. SOME OF THESE KIDS ARE VERY
YOUNG AND THEY’VE NOW BEEN THERE
FOR MONTHS AND MONTHS.
WHAT WE NEED TO DO NOW, WHAT THE
JUDGE SHOULD DO NOW IN THIS CASE
IS TAKE IT OUT OF THE HANDS OF
THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION AND
APPOINT A SPECIAL MASTER OR A
COMMITTEE OF SPECIAL MASTERS WHO
ARE EMPOWERED TO USE ALL OF THE
GOVERNMENT’S RESOURCES TO
REUNIFY THOSE KIDS WITH THEIR
PARENTS AND TO GO FIND THE
PARENTS WHO HAVE BEEN DEPORTED
AND REUNITE THEM WITH THEIR
KIDS.
KIDS. >> CAN THE PRESIDENT DO
SOMETHING LIKE THAT?
CAN HE APPOINT SOMEBODY AND A
COMMITTEE TO TRY AND -- I MEAN,
THIS IS GOING TO BE A VERY
DIFFICULT TASK, TO TRY AND
REUNITE THESE CHILDREN.
>> RIGHT, THE COURT COULD DO IT
OR THE PRESIDENT COULD APPOINT,
ESSENTIALLY, WHAT AMOUNTS TO A
SPECIAL MASTER.
SPECIAL MASTER. BUT THE PROBLEM IS, AS WE’VE
SEEN, THE PRESIDENT -- THIS IS
JUST NOT A PRIORITY FOR HIM.
THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT HE’S
THOUGHT A LOT ABOUT, I DON’T
THINK.
THINK. AND SO, IT’S GOING TO TAKE, I
THINK, THE COURT, A JUDGE IN
THIS CASE, TO COME IN THERE AND
SAY, TO HEALTH AND HUMAN
SERVICES AND TO I.C.E., I’M
TAKING THIS OUT OF YOUR CONTROL.
I’M GIVING TO IT SOMEBODY
OUTSIDE OF THE GOVERNMENT, TO
MAKE SURE THAT IT GETS DONE.
THAT, I THINK, THE BEST COURSE
OF ACTION AT THIS POINT.
>> AND THEN, WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF
THESE REPORTS ABOUT THE
PASSPORTS BEING DENIED?
HAS THIS BEEN HAPPENING IN THE
PAST?
PAST? IS THERE A LEGITIMATE REASON FOR
IT?
IT? THE MIDWIFE CASES?
OR IS THIS MORE OF THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION CRACKING DOWN IN
A WAY THAT NO PRESIDENCY HAS
SEEN?
SEEN? >> WELL, THE REASON THAT "THE
WASHINGTON POST" STORY THAT CAME
OUT, I THINK, TO DAYS AGO, WAS
SO TROUBLING IS THAT BECAUSE,
LOOK, OF COURSE THE PRESIDENT
AND HIS ADMINISTRATION HAVE GONE
AFTER UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS,
INCLUDING DREAMERS, WHO HAVE
BEEN HERE A LONG TIME.
BUT ALSO HAVE GONE AFTER LEGAL
RESIDENTS AND TRIED TO LIMIT THE
NUMBER OF LEGAL RESHIDENTS IN TH
UNITED STATES.
UNITED STATES. AND THEN THERE WAS REPORTING
OVER THE LAST YEAR ABOUT STEPHEN
MILLER TRYING TO FORM A GROUP OF
PEOPLE TO GO SCRUB THE
CITIZENSHIP RECORDS AND
APPLICATIONS OF NATURALIZED
CITIZENS.
CITIZENS. SO WHEN "THE WASHINGTON POST"
REPORT COMES OUT, SAYING THAT
THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS NOW
DENYING THE FULL RIGHTS OF
CITIZENSHIP, INCLUDING PASSPORTS
TO HISPANICS IN SOUTH TEXAS, OF
COURSE IT’S GOING TO RAISE
ALARMS.
ALARMS. I HEARD THE QUO THAT THE STATE
DEPARTMENT GAVE.
DEPARTMENT GAVE. THAT’S NOT EXACTLY WHAT THEY
TOLD OUR OFFICE YESTERDAY.
THEY COULDN’T GIVE US SPECIFIC
NUMBERS ON HOW MANY PEOPLE HAD
BEEN AFFECTED.
BEEN AFFECTED. AND YES, THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM
IN THE PAST.
IN THE 1950s, THERE WAS
BASICALLY, THERE WAS AN
OPERATION CALLED OPERATION
WETBACK, THAT ROUNDED UP A BUNCH
OF MEXICAN NATIONALS, WHO HAD
BEEN BROUGHT HERE TO BE PART OF
THE LABOR FORCE IN THE 1940s AND
50s, BUT IN THAT ROUNDUP, THERE
WERE A LOT OF AMERICANS, MEXICAN
AMERICANS WHO WERE CAUGHT UP IN
THAT AND SUMMARILY DEPORTED.
IT WAS ALSO A PROBLEM LATER, SO
MUCH SO THAT IN 2009, THE OBAMA
ADMINISTRATION ACTUALLY TRIED TO
STOP THE PRACTICE OF DENYING
THESE PASSPORTS, AND IT LOOKS
LIKE THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
MAY BE STARTING IT UP AGAIN.
>> YEAH, "THE POST" REPORTS,
CONGRESSMAN, THAT BOTH GEORGE W.
BUSH AND BARACK OBAMA DID DENY
PASSPORTS, SOME OF THESE MIDWIFE
PASSPORTS.
PASSPORTS. BUT I WANT TO ASK YOU MORE
BROADLY HOW THE ISSUE OF
IMMIGRATION AND THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION’S APPROACH TO IT
IS PLAYING IN THE STATE OF
TEXAS.
TEXAS. THERE’S A BIG SENATE RACE THERE,
BETWEEN BETA O’ROURKE AND TED
CRUZ.
CRUZ. HOW BIG A DEAL IS IMMIGRATION
AND THIS ADMINISTRATION’S STANCE
ON IMMIGRATION IN THAT RACE AND
IN YOUR STATE?
>> I THINK IT’S PLAYING A BIG
ROLE.
ROLE. MANY TEXANS, MOST TEXANS ARE
DISSATISFIED WITH THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION’S POSITION ON
IMMIGRATION.
IMMIGRATION. AND THEY’RE ADVICE SATISFIEDDISS
TED CRUZ, BECAUSE TED CRUZ WON’T
STAND UP TO DONALD TRUMP, EVEN
THOUGH TIME AFTER TIME, NOT ONLY
ON THE ISSUE OF IMMIGRATION, BUT
ALSO ON NAFTA AND OTHER ISSUES,
DONALD TRUMP HAS DONE THINGS
THAT ARE HURTING THE STATE OF
TEXAS.
TEXAS. >> CONGRESSMAN, IT’S JONATHAN
LAMIR.
LAMIR. I MEAN, HOW CLOSELY -- WHAT DO
YOU THINK, ABOUT THE CHILDREN
BEING CELEBRATED.
BEING CELEBRATED. LET’S GO BACK TO THAT IN A
MOMENT.
MOMENT. THIS HAS BECOME SORT OF A
DEFINING MORAL CRISIS OF THIS
ADMINISTRATION.
ADMINISTRATION. AND IT IS ONE THAT IS STILL
CONTINUING.
CONTINUING. WE’RE NOW A COUPLE OF MONTHS IN.
YOU MENTIONED THE PRESIDENT
COULD STEP ON THE SPECIAL
MASTER, BUT MORE BROADLY
SPEAKING, WHAT DO YOU THINK THIS
SAYS ABOUT THE VALUES OF
AMERICA.
AMERICA. THAT THIS COULD STILL BE
HAPPENING, STILL PERSISTING, AND
EVEN THOUGH WE’RE A FEW WEEKS
NOW FROM SEEING THESE IMAGES OF
CHILDREN CRYING AND SEPARATED AT
THE BORDER, NOW THEY’RE BEING
REPLACED BY IMAGES AND PARENTS,
EVEN THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN
REUNITED, THOSE CHILDREN BEING
CHANGED.
CHANGED. NOT RECOGNIZING THEIR MOTHER OR
FATHER OR FEELING DIFFERENT.
WHERE DOES THAT SPEAK TO US
RIGHT NOW AS A NATION?
>> WELL, Y’ALL KNOW THAT THIS,
THE NEWS CYCLE MOVES SO FAST
NOW, BUT THIS STORY WAS ON THE
NEWS FOR ABOUT SIX WEEKS
STRAIGHT, WHICH IS REMARKABLE IN
THIS ERA, TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.
AND TO CAPTURE THE NATION’S
ATTENTION.
ATTENTION. AND I THINK WHEN MOST PERSONS
SAW WHAT HAPPENED AND THE
SEPARATION, ESPECIALLY OF YOUNG
KIDS, I WENT TO TWO OF OTHESE
FACILITIES AND SAW AN
8-MONTH-OLD BABY AND A
1-YEAR-OLD GIRL WERE THERE WITH
NO FAMILY MEMBERS, NO PARENTS
PRESENT, AND I THINK PEOPLE’S
REACTIONS WERE, THIS IS NOT
AMERICA, THIS ISN’T WHO WE ARE
AND SHOULDN’T BE WHO WE ARE AND
WHAT WE STAND FOR.
AND THE CHALLENGE NOW IS TO MAKE
SURE THAT THOSE REMAINING KIDS
THAT HAVE BEEN SEPARATED FROM
THEIR PARENTS GET REUNITED.
YOU KNOW, BUT ANOTHER CHALLENGE
IS, LIKE I SAID, THE MEDIA CYCLE
MOVES SO FAST AND THERE’S SO
MANY LEGITIMATELY IMPORTANT
STORIES THAT COME UP, BUT WE
CAN’T LET THIS GO.
WE CAN’T ALLOW 500 PEOPLE, 500
KIDS TO BE PERMANENTLY SEPARATED
FROM THEIR PARENTS, JUST BECAUSE
THOSE PARENTS WERE SEEKING
ASYLUM OR SO DESPERATE THAT THEY
FELT THAT THEY NEEDED TO LEAVE
THEIR HOME COUNTRY TO SEEK A
BETTER LIFE AND PROTECT
THEMSELVES.
THEMSELVES. >> CONGRESSMAN JOAQUIN CASTRO,
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME,
APPRECIATE IT.
APPRECIATE IT. >>> WE HAVE A LOT MORE AHEAD
THIS MORNING ON "MORNING JOE"
AND SOME FUN VIDEO AS WE GO TO
BREAK.
BREAK. A LOOK AT BRITISH PRIME MINISTER
THERESA MAY THROWING DOWN SOME
DANCE MOVES YESTERDAY IN KENYA
ON A THREE-DAY TRIP AIMED AT
BOOSTING BRITAIN’S TRADE WITH
THAT COUNTRY.
THAT COUNTRY. OH, SHE REALLY IS GETTING DOWN.
THIS REALLY, THOUGH, JUST AN
EXCUSE FOR US TO SHOW PRESIDENT
BUSH.
BUSH. >> YES.
>> YES. >> THE MEMBERS OF A WEST AFRICAN
DANCE COMPANY IN THE ROSE GARDEN
IN 2007.
IN 2007. >> I DON’T THINK WE’VE SEEN
PRESIDENT TRUMP DANCING LIKE
THIS, ANY SORT OF --
>> SOMEHOW -- AND WORKING THE
DRUMS, AS WELL.
DON’T FORGET THAT.