Under Obama, it was 'not an ideal situation.' Under Trump, it's 'cages'?
Both Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump dealt with a rapid surge in asylum seekers overwhelming the ports of entry and illegal crossings as well. And beforeTrump, the majority of asylum seekers were eventually released into the population before their asylum case could be decided by an immigration judge. The pictures show overflow intake facilities at the most crowded border sectors. Children and adults must be kept safe and monitored while their identity is verified. The definition of overwhelmed means there is not enough space or resources to accommodate such an influx.
A big reason why the ACLU and others were so upset about Trump’s actions is because of his “zero-tolerance” policy, announced by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in April 2018. Basically, the plan was to prosecute everyone who entered via an illegal crossing, even if they had children with them. And because of a court ruling called “Flores,” that meant family units could not be detained together until their case was decided. This caused a huge uproar, and more than 2,500 children were separated from either their parent, relative, or someone claiming to be their parent. This used to happen under the Obama administration, but it was much rarer — it applied only to criminal records or other crimes besides illegal entry. As of August 2, 2018, 2,551 were separated. Of those, 1,440 were reunited with their parents, family or sponsors in the U.S. And 380 children turned 18 while in custody. (Can you imagine how hard that would be? Then again, can you imagine how hard the journey here would be for a minor of any age?)