ICYMI | CNN Immediately Botches Facts On Trump Admin’s Move To Terminate Flores Settlement

ICYMI | CNN Immediately Botches Facts On Trump Admin’s Move To Terminate Flores Settlement
August 25, 2019 No Comments » International Affairs, Latest, Local Politics, Press Releases, RNHA News Articles, Trump, White House Rey Torres

Daily Caller

By Amber Athey

August 22, 2019

Link to article here.

CNN mischaracterized the Trump administration’s new rule on immigration less than an hour after it was announced Wednesday.

As the Daily Caller reported Tuesday night, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is establishing national standards for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) family residential centers so that migrant family units can be held together for the duration of their immigration court proceedings. The new guidance effectively terminates the Flores agreement, a 1977 court ruling that has since been interpreted to mean that family units with children cannot be detained together longer than 20 days.

DHS officially announced the rule change during a scheduled 9:30 am eastern press conference.

Just under an hour later, CNN misled viewers of its cable programming by suggesting that the new policy meant children could be held in cages indefinitely.

CNN anchor Jim Sciutto told viewers during the 10 am hour that the Flores agreement means families can be held a maximum of 20 days “in the facilities you see here.” The program then cut to a shot of an El Paso, Texas Border Patrol facility featuring migrants behind chain-link fences and wearing foil blankets.

The clear implication of the CNN segment was that the family units could now be detained in such Border Patrol facilities beyond 20 days with the new DHS rule.

However, the Flores agreement applies to ICE facilities, not facilities run by Border Patrol.

In fact, family units stay in Border Patrol facilities for a relatively short amount of time — hours or a few days, depending on various factors — before they are either released or transferred to an ICE family residential center.

“Right now, families average less than four days from apprehension to release or transfer to ICE. That is a reasonable average at current flow levels and with current operational procedures in place,” a DHS official explained to the Caller.

The residential centers that children and their family members would actually stay in for the duration of their court proceedings look very different than the CNN segment suggested, containing various amenities and programs intended for long-term stays.

DHS Acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan described the facilities during the Wednesday press conference as “campus-like settings with appropriate medical, educational, recreational, dining, and private housing facilities.”

“It was extremely concerning that the public was being presented with an inaccurate portrayal of the manner in which migrant families are held in ICE Family Residential Centers,” a DHS official said. “Border Patrol facilities used for initial family intake are very, very different than the ICE facilities the Flores regulation pertains to. This is an egregious misunderstanding of the issue.”

CNN continued to show Border Patrol facilities throughout the day while talking about the Flores rule on Wednesday, leading DHS to make several requests for CNN to quit using the misleading b-roll footage. In one instance, Acting ICE Director Matt Albence made an in-person request to CNN to stop using the footage and issue a correction while he was in the studio for an interview on the network.

CNN did not return a request for comment.

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About The Author
Rey Torres Rey Torres was born and raised in the US Territory of Puerto Rico (hoping it becomes State 51) and moved later to New York, where he has lived for many years. He is a lifelong Conservative, a Healthcare Administrator, and a dedicated Bible Theology and Christian Education Instructor in New York for over thirty years. Rey is an apologist and author, publishing papers such as “Quantum God: The logical implications of Quantum Mechanics and the existence of God” a persuasive document using scientific reasoning to prove the existence of God. In addition, Rey is a professional musician, a recording artist, and a writer for many Christian artists as Yadira Coradín, Michael Rodriguez, Josue Sánchez, Angel Maldonado, and his wife, Mairén Medina-Torres. A former ordained minister, Rey and his wife Mairén are devoted Evangelical Christians, active with local community outreach events, international missions, and at their local congregation. If you enjoyed the article and would like to see more, become a member or donate to the RNHA today! The Republican National Hispanic Assembly is a not-for-profit organization. We are an independent media institution funded by small donors. We depend on you to continue to produce quality content.

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