Trump Administration detaining migrant families with kids: Border Watch with Jonathan Mejia
FOX 26's Jonathan Mejia Border Watch with Jonathan Mejia newsletter
HOUSTON - Border watchers,
President Trump and his administration are reviving the controversial practice of detaining migrant families with children in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. It’s the latest move in the administration’s efforts to carry out a mass deportation campaign.
Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said those targeted have deportation orders and confirmed the Trump administration is using two Texas immigration detention centers to hold families who are in the country illegally.
PREVIOUSLY ON BORDER WATCH: Trump Administration's victories on border security, immigrations: Border Watch with Jonathan Mejia
The Karnes detention facility is in Karnes City, Texas, a small town east of San Antonio. The other ICE detention center equipped to house families with minor children is in Dilley, Texas, another small town south of San Antonio. The Biden administration used those sites to detain migrant adults.
The move by the Trump administration is a reversal of policy under the Biden administration, which discontinued the long-term detention of migrant families. The practice was first implemented on a large-scale by the Obama administration, to discourage families from crossing the southern border illegally.
Also, new this week, undocumented immigrants who wish to return to their native countries can now do so voluntarily through a new app called "CBP Home App." This new app replaces the controversial "CBP One App." It has a "self-deportation reporting feature" letting immigrants "submit their intent to depart" the U.S. The Homeland Security Department said the self-deportation option is part of a $200 million domestic and international ad campaign encouraging undocumented immigrants to "Stay Out and Leave Now."
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However, not everything is going well for President Trump’s deportation efforts. The administration is facing a reality check: a lack of funds, detention space, officers and infrastructure is hampering mass deportation operations. The administration wants more resources from Congress, but in the meantime, is using this new campaign to encourage people here illegally to leave on their own.