Trump Is Playing The Blame Game About Child Deaths At The Border With This Puzzling Tweet
President Donald Trump has posted a lot of questionable things on Twitter. He's spread misinformation. He's lashed out against everyone from Special Counsel Robert Mueller to JAY-Z... But nothing beats what he shared to his page on Dec. 29. Responding to the recent deaths of two migrant children in United States custody, Trump put all the blame on Democrats, and these tweets about Trump blaming Democrats for child deaths at the border are seriously going in.
On Saturday, Dec. 29, Trump tweeted that Democrats are to blame for migrant child deaths at the border, referring to two migrant children, a 7-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy who both died while in government custody in December, per CBS News. Trump said this was due to the party's "pathetic immigration policies" that lead migrants to believe they can travel and enter America illegally. Yes, really. Elite Daily reached out to the White House, as well as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, for any additional comment on Trump's accusations, but did not immediately hear back. The comment attracted widespread criticism almost immediately, with many people taking to Twitter to call out Trump's remarks.
What makes it all even worse is that The New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman tweeted that Trump's comments are reportedly the first time he ever acknowledged the children's deaths, and they're nothing but blame. The White House did not immediately respond to Elite Daily's request for comment on Haberman's tweet. In addition to that, Trump suggested that more deaths may be ahead, writing, "Border Patrol needs the Wall and it will all end." Here's a look at the first tweet blaming Dems:
Any deaths of children or others at the Border are strictly the fault of the Democrats and their pathetic immigration policies that allow people to make the long trek thinking they can enter our country illegally. They can’t. If we had a Wall, they wouldn’t even try! The two...
Continuing his blame game, Trump wrote:
...children in question were very sick before they were given over to Border Patrol. The father of the young girl said it was not their fault, he hadn’t given her water in days. Border Patrol needs the Wall and it will all end. They are working so hard & getting so little credit!
The White House did not immediately reply to Elite Daily's inquiry regarding further clarification of President Trump's tweets.
For some people in the Twitterverse, the comments are a new low for Trump.
There's just... so much to unpack here. For starters, Trump seems to be referring to a 7-year-old girl named Jakelin Caal who died in U.S. custody in early December, per CBS News. According to CNN, her family's attorneys say she wasn't given water while she was detained (Customs and Border Patrol has pushed back on this), which appears to contradict Trump's comments. The White House did not immediately respond to Elite Daily's request for comment on Trump's claims that the father of one of the children said he hadn't given the child water in days. (The other child, Felipe Gomez Alonzo, 8, reportedly died on Christmas Eve, six days after he was detained by government officials.) The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) oversees Customs and Border Patrol, and DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen called Alonzo's death "deeply concerning and heartbreaking," per TIME. The publication also reported that Alonzo tested positive for the flu, following his death, per the Office of the Medical Investigator, but noted that the Medical Investigator's Office also said more tests are required to determine "an accurate cause of death."
But there's more than just that. Many of the migrants are also reportedly fleeing violence and crime in their native countries, seemingly making them eligible for asylum. U.S. law allows asylum seekers physically in the United States to claim asylum, regardless of their legal status or how they may have entered the country, which seems to contradict Trump's comments that they are entering the country "illegally." The White House did not reply to Elite Daily's inquiry regarding Trump's comment on the matter. I can't make this stuff up.
His comments came as the partial government shutdown enters its eighth day, as Congress is still deadlocked over funding for Trump's long promised wall at the U.S. southern border. Earlier on Saturday, the president accused Democrats of being too focused on "presidential harassment" than reaching a deal on border security. Elite Daily reached out for any additional comment, but did not immediately hear back. While he has requested $5 billion for a full wall, Democrats have merely offered just over $1 billion for wall fencing and barriers — and both have made it clear that they aren't letting up.
That said, there's surely going to be more back-and-forth until this drama is all ironed out. But maybe leave this kind of blame out of it? Just saying.
