Ex-GOP lawmaker: Trump blaming Congress for his border separation policy is ‘a bunch of bull’

A centrist GOP lawmaker who retired last month is calling President Trump’s claim that Congress is responsible for the “zero tolerance” policy that separates families at the border “a bunch of bull.” 

“A lot of members [of Congress] recognize that’s just a bunch of bull,” former Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) said Monday on CNN’s “New Day.” “We know that. It’s not something Congress has ordered, it’s something the administration has ordered.” 

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Dent, a frequent critic of Trump who served 13 years in the House, also suggested the Trump policy will hurt the president and his party.

“Separating children from their families is not a political winner,” Dent said.

Dent’s comments come as Democratic and Republican lawmakers call on Trump to reverse course on a policy that instructs the Department of Homeland Security to separate families that enter the country illegally at the U.S.-Mexico border. 

Trump has repeatedly and incorrectly blamed Democrats in Congress for the policy’s existence. The policy is the result of a directive from his administration. But he’s also defended it, saying on Monday that he doesn’t want the U.S. to turn into a “migrant camp.” 

“If the Democrats would sit down instead of obstructing, we could have something done very quickly,” Trump said on Monday. “Good for the children, good for the country, good for the world.”