Tag: kirstjen

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1700 Migrant Children Were Separated Before “Zero Tolerance” Policy

A shocking NBC News piece says DHS separated more than 1700 migrant children before it officially began the “zero tolerance” policy in May 2018. This means the 1700 figure is over and above the official figures released by the Trump administration as to the number of migrant children separated from their parents as a result of the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy which according to this NBC News piece currently stands at 2800. Think about that, we are now finding out that the roughly 2800 migrant children that were separated from their parents as a result of DHS’ “zero tolerance” policy sparking justified national outrage, were just a drop in the bucket.

All these new revelations are coming out as a result of U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw’s order that the Trump administration identify all the migrant children that were separated before “zero tolerance” took effect and make efforts to reunite them with their families. Lee Gelent, the Lead ACLU lawyer in the case told NBC News, “The government has indicated that it has already found preliminary indications of 1700 more separated families, on top of the more than 3000 separated families already reported.”

Bottom line folks, it appears even with all the bombshell news reports about DHS’ evil family separation policy and the resultant national outrage, we are just now coming to terms with the breadth and scope of DHS’ troubling actions in this regard. It is vitally important that House Democrats and the mainstream media not drop their guard on this humanitarian issue of great national concern so that we not only get to the bottom of what happened here, but that bad actors are brought to justice. America owes this to the innocent migrant children.

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Trump Admin Declaring Migrant Parents Ineligible To Reunite With Their Own Children

Rachel Maddow yesterday did a segment about Trump administration’s infamous family separation policy. The segment was based on the day’s breaking news that House Democrats have issued a subpoena to the Trump Administration requesting all documents related to its family separation policy–the first subpoena by House Democrats to the Trump administration

In Maddow’s interview with Rep Karen Bass however, the California Dem dropped a major bombshell when she revealed that the Trump administration has empowered Border Patrol agents to unilaterally and arbitrarily declare migrant parents ineligible to reunify with their own children–a very shocking revelation .

Rep Bass told Maddow, “One of the things that concerns me a lot Rachel is this category of parents that were considered ineligible to reunify with their children. There is no basis for a Border Patrol agent to determine who is eligible or ineligible to be a parent. We do not treat children that way in the child welfare system when their parents have been charged with neglect and abuse, so why on earth would we do that to parents who have not had any charge like that at all?”

The full Maddow segment is available here but the relevant clip is below

It is shocking how much power the Trump administration has entrusted to Border Patrol agents and others to make arbitrary but highly consequential decisions affecting the lives of migrant families. Think about that folks, even a federal judge does not have the power to unilaterally and without any due process whatsoever, declare a migrant parent “ineligible” to reunite with their own children yet the Trump administration has empowered Border Patrol agents working under the auspices of DHS to do just that.

Yours Truly would be remiss if he didn’t give a shout out to our very own rookie Rep Sylvia Garcia, (H-Town pride) who during the House hearings asked the question every American parent would like to pose to DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen if given the opportunity; “Did you ever just say this really goes against humanity, we should not be doing this to children? Did you think of your own child and what would happen if somebody took your child from you?” Rep Garcia’s question is what the mainstream media should pester each and every Trump administration official involved with this evil family separation policy.

Bottom line folks the Trump administration’s family separation policy will go down as one of the most inhumane, and yes, evil U.S. government policy ever, the latest exhibit being this bombshell revelation by Rep Karen Bass that Border Patrol agents are unilaterally and arbitrarily declaring migrant parents ineligible to reunify with their own children. Folks, this is totally unacceptable and we hope congressional Democrats and the mainstream media make it the big deal that it is

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DHS Gutting Election Meddling Task Force

DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen

A bombshell Daily Beast piece says despite the threat of a Russian/foreign attack on the upcoming 2020 Elections, DHS is gutting two task forces specifically created to counter such attacks. According to the Daily Beast piece, the two DHS task forces being downgraded are part of the Cyber Security and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) whose job is to guard the nation against foreign cyber attacks including those targeting our election infrastructure.

This is of course very serious news given the ongoing TrumpRussia investigation but predictably, it has also escaped the attention of the corporate mainstream media which instead devotes much of its attention and resources to Trump/GOP-inspired “scandals” implicating Democrats, the latest being Senator Warren’s ancestry and the mess in Virginia state government.

The Daily Beast reports that the two task forces meant to guard our elections against foreign meddling, especially by Russia, have seen drastic staff reduction since the 2018 midterm elections and there are no plans to ramp them back up to full force even as we face similar threats in 2020.

One of the excuses being put forward by DHS, an unavailing one, is that the task forces were meant to be temporary in nature and therefore as bad as the staff reductions look given the ongoing Russian threat, there is nothing abnormal or sinister about them. In other words the staff reductions were bound to happen one way or another because the task forces were not set up to be permanent.

Bottom line House Democrats and indeed the mainstream media must put pressure on DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to explain why two DHS task forces specifically charged with election security are being downgraded. Simply put, after the horrendous family separation policy and now this, Secretary Nielsen’s tenure at DHS is becoming increasingly hard to justify from both a professional and moral standpoint.

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Devos Profiting From Separated Migrant Children?

Education Secretary Betsy Devos

As the scandal surrounding thousands of migrant children who the Department of Homeland Security appears to have lost track of continues, a troubling but interesting thread is developing and that is, that the migrant children are not lost, but are instead being channelled into adoption for profit. In other words, there is a profit motive behind the already shocking child separation policy.

Even more troubling is that the adoption agency at the center of this controversy, Bethany Christian Services, has close ties to current Education Secretary Betsy Devos, a close ally of President Trump. Strangely, even though this is a topic that has been reported by some sections of the mainstream media, it has not garnered the attention it clearly deserves.

Yours Truly has certainly done his part highlighting this very troubling migrant children separation issue and will continue to do so

Bottom line, House Democrats and the mainstream media need to get to the bottom of the migrant children separation issue and specifically, whether there are people up to and including Education Secretary Betsy Devos, who are profiting from the pain and suffering of these migrant families. This is way beyond politics and clearly a moral issue of the utmost importance. Simply put, tax payer funds should not be used to separate migrant families or any other family for that matter, for profit.

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Best Political Take Down Of 2018–THE LIES!!

In case you missed it, DHS Secretary Kirtsjen Nielsen’s recent hearing on Capitol Hill produced some unexpected highly dramatic moments, the most memorable one being her encounter with Congressman Luis Gutierrez(D-Illinois). Instead of using his allotted time to ask Sec Nielsen questions and then hearing her response, which is what typically happens at such hearings, Rep Gutierrez instead used all his allotted time to viciously slam Sec Nielsen and the Trump administration over their constant lies. After unloading on Sec Nielsen for five minutes straight after which House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte(R-VA) motioned the DHS Secretary to respond, Rep Gutierrez walked out of the hearing in essence suggesting that he didn’t want to hear any more lies from Sec Nielsen. Ouch!!

In this must-watch video, Rep Gutierrez highlights several of the major lies that have been told by the Trump administration but then delivers this final punishing blow on Sec Nielsen herself;“It is as if you can’t see the reality of modern immigration or the contributions of anyone who came from countries other than Norway and other parts of Europe. Its as if you and the Trump administration are blind. You know what, seems like you agree with Tucker Carlson that immigrants only bring danger and dirt and division. But I have to say the all-time record for lying in the face of all the evidence was a tweet by you Madam Secretary, sent out on June 17th and it says, ‘We do not have a policy of separating families at the border period.’ That was your twitter account, that’s what you put out. Yet you come here today to tell us exactly its your policy of separating families and children from their families, another lie………Shame on us for wearing our badge of Christianity during Christmas and allowing the Secretary to come here and lie.”

The full congressional hearing is available here but the relevant clip is below

For the record, Yours Truly prefers/advocates for a more civil/collegiate tone during congressional hearings. However we can all agree that with the Trump administration things are no longer normal, especially as regards to the incessant lying Rep Gutierrez correctly laments. Yours Truly makes an exception in this case by agreeing with congressman Gutierrez’s slamming of Sec Nielsen for lying and then walking out on her. Maybe, just maybe dramatic incidents like these will make Sec Nielsen and the Trump administration realize that Americans are tired of being told bold-faced lies on a daily basis and that they need government officials to level with them.

Bottom line no U.S administration has ever been so comfortable telling provable lies to the public on a daily basis as the Trump administration does, especially through Press Secretary Sarah Sanders. Desperate times call for desperate measures and maybe public displays of outrage like the one brilliantly executed by congressman Gutierrez are exactly the desperate measures needed to counter Trump administration’s lies. Secretary Nielsen’s remarks in response to Rep Gutierrez indicate clearly that she was stung by the lying charge and got the message, which is why Yours Truly considers this the best political take down of 2018. Hopefully from now on we can get truthful answers from DHS regarding other issues of great public interest including but not limited to illegal surveillance.

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Tyrannical DHS Is Arraigning 2 Year Olds In Immigration Court

DHS recently arraigned 2 year old Fernanda Jacqueline Davila, a Honduran, before an Immigration Judge

A very troubling New York Times piece says Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s DHS which already shocked Americans with its cruel & inhumane family separation policy a few months ago, is now arraigning migrant children as young as 2 years old before immigration judges—2 year olds folks!!

It is well known that court settings can be very intimidating to a lot of adults–even traffic court. Can you imagine how scared a 2 year old would be being asked questions by an Immigration judge without their parents, in a court with uniformed law enforcement officers? The poor Honduran girl was probably so tormented by her immigration court experience, she will remember it for the rest of her life.


These horrendous scenes we are witnessing with secretary Nielsen’s DHS never used to happen in previous administrations–this callous disregard for the welfare of migrant children. You don’t have to take Yours Truly’s word for it, here’s what the President of the National Association of Immigration Judges Ashley Tabaddor said: “We rarely had children under the age of 6 until the last year or so.”

Previous administrations have always gone to great lengths to ensure the young children of immigrants are spared as much as possible from the emotional trauma stemming from the decisions of their parents to bring them across the border. It is very clear that such caution has been thrown out of the window by the current Trump administration and certainly by Secretary Nielsen’s tyrannical DHS where seemingly even 2 year old migrant children are fair game.

Bottom line little Fernanda Jacqueline Davila and other very young migrant children should not be arraigned in immigration court. Surely there are other humane, civilized ways DHS could handle their immigration cases without subjecting them to this needless emotional torture. DHS does this simply because it has the power to do it. Tyranny is defined as “cruel, unreasonable, or arbitrary use of power or control.” Now you understand why Yours Truly routinely refers to Sec Nielsen’s DHS as “Tyrannical DHS”.

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Why Is DHS Letting Local Election Officials Defend Themselves Against Russia?


A cyber security expert David Hickton recently made a startling revelation on MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow show that the Department of Homeland Security is apparently letting local county election officials defend their voting systems against the threat of hacking by Putin’s Russia. Think about that folks, while most Americans think DHS is the first line of defense going out there chasing down would be Russian hackers to prevent them from interfering in midterms 2018, we now find out courtesy of Maddow that Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s DHS has in fact left local county officials to defend themselves against the powerful military grade Russian hacking capabilities–a total travesty!


This is a very serious story that deserves the utmost attention by the mainstream media and Democrats. As Maddow correctly points out in the segment, it is foolhardy to expect that local county officials will have the wherewithal to withstand a highly sophisticated Russian hacking operation,  with all due respect to local county officials.

Bottom line Dems and the mainstream media must confront DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen for leaving local county officials fend for themselves against the threat of Russian hacking when she knows or ought to know they cannot possibly fend off a highly sophisticated Russian hacking operation. Simply put Dems should demand Secretary Nielsen’s resignation if she does not make her DHS the first line of defense against Russian hacking in midterms 2018. Anything less than that would be an abdication of her sworn duty to protect the homeland against foreign threats.

The full Maddow segment is available here but the relevant clip is below

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Trump Administration Locking Migrant Children In Cages

In a previous post Yours Truly called on Congressional Democrats to demand an immediate end to Trump Administration’s “Zero Tolerance” policy for its evil/inhumane practice of ripping migrant children from their parents upon apprehension at the southern U.S. border. This is a policy that the United Nations has called a violation of human rights and most recently torture so Dems must not hold any punches over it. It is quite encouraging to see highly influential figures in the Democratic Party like former President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton forcefully voicing their opposition to this evil “Zero Tolerance” policy and Congressional Dems should follow their lead.


However Dems must also expose an even more troubling aspect of this already abominable “Zero Tolerance” policy which is that the Trump Admnistration is putting Migrant Children in cages–like animals.

This is simply unacceptable in the United States of America, let alone any civilized society. Part of the Dem opposition to the evil “Zero Tolerance” policy has to be this sickening practice of putting migrant children in cages. Quite frankly at this point, Dems have no otherwise but to join Sen Kamala Harris in calling for the immediate resignation of DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen


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