Trump highlights praise from judge on reuniting families his administration divided

President Trump on Monday highlighted praise from a federal judge to tout his administration’s efforts to reunify migrant families that were separated under his administration’s own policy.
In a tweet, Trump said a federal judge stated Monday that his administration gets “great credit” for reuniting families. The president seemed to be referring to comments made Friday by U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw.
Trump thanked Sabraw, and encouraged followers to “look at the previous administrations record – not good!”
A highly respected Federal judge today stated that the “Trump Administration gets great credit” for reuniting illegal families. Thank you, and please look at the previous administrations record – not good!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 30, 2018
While previous administrations apprehended and detained people who illegally crossed the border, they did not implement a policy that led directly to the separation of migrant children from their parents.{mosads}
Sabraw had instituted a July 26 deadline for the government to reunite the more than 2,000 children who were separated from their families as a result of the Trump Justice Department’s “zero tolerance” policy.
On Friday, the judge said Trump administration officials deserved “great credit” for reuniting more than 1,800 children over the age of 5 with parents or sponsors by the court-imposed deadline, The Associated Press reported.
However, Sabraw also noted that the government was at fault for failing to unify hundreds of other children, blaming a lack of communication.
“Each [department] was like its own stovepipe, each had its own boss, and they did not communicate,” Sabraw said. “What was lost in the process was the family.”
The Trump administration enacted its zero tolerance policy earlier this year, prosecuting everyone who crossed the border illegally. When adults were arrested, any children accompanying them were placed in separate detention facilities.
The practice drew overwhelming bipartisan backlash, prompting Trump to sign an executive order halting the separations.
Trump has made cracking down on illegal immigration a central tenet of his administration. He has repeatedly called on Congress to enact stricter immigration laws, and on Monday doubled down on his threat to shut down the government in September if lawmakers don’t address his demands.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.