A top White House aide on Wednesday put the onus back on Congress to address immigration laws, one day after President Trump signed an executive order to halt the practice of separating families at the border.
Mercedes Schlapp, the White House director of strategic communications, said on Hill.TV’s “Rising” that despite the president’s reversal after days of declaring “only Congress” can address family separation, he’s still looking to lawmakers to pass additional immigration reform.
“We know that the only way we can find a fix to this problem is if Congress acts,” Schlapp said.
She indicated the two bills that are coming up for a vote in the House would meet the Trump administration’s standards for border security and other reforms. She said they would also close a loophole that has led to families being separated, she said.
However, she acknowledged that if either bill passes the House, it would face a difficult road in the Senate.
“The action’s going to be right now, it lies in the hands of the House of Representatives, they’re looking obviously to whip those votes and see if they can get it through the House,” Schlapp said. “Then we have the uphill battle with the Senate.”
She repeated a common talking point from the White House that Trump wants to see Congress address immigration issues.
“What the president wants is he wants to see Congress take action on this issue,” she continued. “For too long, for too many decades there has been little to no action made in terms of closing our borders.”
The Trump administration announced a “zero tolerance” immigration policy in April, stating that federal agents would “aggressively” prosecute migrants crossing the U.S.–Mexico border illegally.
That policy has led to the separation of thousands of children from their families at the border.
The separations prompted heavy criticism from lawmakers in both parties as well as international leaders who called the practice “cruel” and “inhumane.”
Trump gave in to pressure on Wednesday, signing an executive order that would allow families to be detained together. That measure came after days of administration officials claiming that only Congress could end the practice of family separation.
— Brett Samuels
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