Under Pressure, Trump Administration Expected To Streamline Process Of Reuniting Separate Families
To speed up the reunions, the government will no longer insist on fingerprinting all adults in a household where a child will live, or require home visits by a social worker. Meanwhile, tech issues aren't helping the problems. And lawmakers' tarrying at a House Appropriations Committee highlights just how hard it will be to pass immigration measures in this Congress.
The New York Times:
Trump Administration To Speed Reunions Of Families Separated At Border
Facing pressure to expedite the reunion of migrant families separated at the border, the Trump administration is expected to announce on Thursday that it will streamline the process, immigration advocates say. The government will stop requiring a litany of steps before a child can be released from a shelter, the American Civil Liberties Union confirmed. It has sued the government over the family separations. (Jordan, 7/12)
Reuters:
Tech Issues Plague U.S. Web Portal Tracking Separated Children
In late June, attorney Sebastian Harley tried to log into a U.S. government web portal to check on a Guatemalan child who had been separated from his parent at the border. He got an error message saying there were too many users. “I just couldn’t get in,” he said. “The system appeared to be down.” (Levinson, Cooke and Torbati, 7/11)
The Associated Press:
Lawmakers Battle Over Migrants Crossing Border Illegally
Congress' fight over President Donald Trump's abandoned policy of separating migrant families has stirred anew, drawing fresh attention to an issue that has divided Republicans and that Democrats hope will propel voters their way in the midterm elections. The battling at the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday underscored how both parties still see vast political potency in immigration, even as congressional votes have shown that partisan differences and divisions within the GOP make it unlikely anything will reach Trump's desk soon. (7/12)
CQ:
Labor-HHS-Education Bill OK'd; Family Separation Changes Added
The House Appropriations Committee late Wednesday evening approved, 30-22, a $177.1 billion fiscal 2019 bill to fund the departments of Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services. The committee has now approved 11 of its 12 fiscal 2019 spending measures, following the marathon 13-hour markup of the massive nondefense bill that left lawmakers from both parties exasperated at various points. The debate covered family separations at the U.S.-Mexico border, gun research funding, abstinence-only sex education and thorny political issues around religious adoption agencies. (Siddons and Mejdrich, 7/11)
