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DHS Head Denies GOP Claims Of 'Crisis' At Border

There's been an influx of unaccompanied minors heading to the border and being housed in detention facilities as their asylum claims get processed.
Posted at 12:57 PM, Mar 18, 2021
and last updated 2021-03-18 14:57:00-04

The head of the Department of Homeland Security says there isn't a crisis at the border as some some Republican lawmakers are suggesting.

Alejandro Mayorkas says the Biden administration is working to fix a humanitarian crisis left behind by Donald Trump, referring to the zero-tolerance policy that resulted in kids being separated from their families at the border.

Mayorkas says the White House is working on long-term solutions to deep-rooted problems.

"A crisis is when a nation is willing to rip a nine-year-old child out of the hands of his or her parent and separate that family to deter future migration," he said. "That, to me, is a humanitarian crisis."

While President Biden has rolled back Trump-era immigration policies, we're still seeing an influx of unaccompanied minors heading to the border and being housed in detention facilities as their asylum claims get processed. Thousands of kids are being held longer than the 72-hour policy put in place by a court order. 


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