唐纳德·特朗普总统的最高移民官员为政府无限期拘留移民家庭的最新计划辩护，称这将有助于遏制非法移民和解决边境设施过度拥挤的问题。
公民和移民服务局代理局长肯·库奇内利(Ken Cuccinelli)周五早上出现在美国有线电视新闻网上，讨论最新的移民法规变化。新法规取代了一项法庭协议，该协议规定了拘留儿童的20天期限。
美国有线电视新闻网的阿利辛·喀麦隆塔对该计划发表了评论，称“在一个层面上，它保护儿童，但也使儿童面临过度拥挤的问题。”然后，她展示了Cuccinelli的照片和边境拥挤的边境设施的录像。
“我知道你不想要真正的答案。“我知道你不想要真相，”库奇内利回答说，并补充说他不会“坐视不管”
Cuccinelli认为，该计划是解决边境设施过度拥挤和恶劣生活条件的“关键部分”。
“这解决了这个问题，向那些考虑非法进入南部边境的家庭表明，他们将被拘留，直到听证会举行，”他说。
库契内利接着说，政府希望该法规对非法移民起到“威慑”作用，因为移民现在知道他们将被无限期拘留，而不是在法庭诉讼期间被释放到美国。
本周早些时候，国土安全部部长凯文·麦卡利斯南在新闻发布会上宣布了移民规则的改变。麦卡利斯南告诉记者，此举是为了消除移民利用儿童进入美国的动机
“任何孩子都不应该成为操纵我们移民系统计划的棋子，”他说。
该政策删除了1997年弗洛雷斯定居协议规定的指导方针，该协议要求政府将移民儿童置于尽可能少的限制环境中。法院裁定，儿童不能再被无限期关押在拘留中心，要么必须被释放给家庭成员，要么被转移到有执照的护理机构。在最近监督解决方案的裁决中，一名联邦法官禁止政府拘留有孩子的移民家庭超过20天。
特朗普总统周三表示，他对试图越境的移民儿童数量感到担忧，并赞扬了让家庭团聚的新规定。
“我心里有孩子。这让我非常困扰，”特朗普告诉记者。
2019年7月2日，萨尔瓦多母亲安娜·埃斯梅拉达和2岁的儿子曼纽尔·亚历山大在得克萨斯州洛斯埃巴诺斯被拘留后，一名边境巡逻人员从他们那里获取了个人数据。特朗普政府现在将无限期拘留移民家庭，官员们表示，这项新规定将阻止非法移民越过南部边境。约翰·摩亚/盖蒂
现在，根据这项新规定，移民家庭单位将在整个移民法庭诉讼过程中被关押在一起。联邦政府将把他们关押在“家庭居住中心”，为未成年人提供医疗保健、教育和移民会见律师和代表的资源。
麦卡利斯南说，一旦规则改变实施，这些家庭将被平均拘留50天。国土安全部已经建立了三个家庭居住中心，共有2500至3000张床位。
库奇内利声称这项新计划将通过向移民展示他们将被无限期拘留来帮助阻止移民，这与麦卡利斯南向记者表示特朗普政府“无意长时间拘留家庭”形成了直接对比
尽管如此，特朗普还是称赞了这一政策，并告诉记者，他的政府将增加更多削减美国移民的提议
“是我把这些家庭维系在一起。特朗普说:“就我们现在所做的而言，我们会做得更多，但这将使人们几乎不可能非法进入我们的国家。”
TRUMP'S IMMIGRATION OFFICIAL SAYS PLAN TO DETAIN MIGRANT FAMILIES LONGER SOLVES BORDER FACILITY OVERCROWDING
President Donald Trump's top immigration official defended the administration's latest plan to detain migrant families indefinitely, arguing it will help curb illegal immigration and solve overcrowding in border facilities.
Ken Cuccinelli, the acting Director of the Citizenship and Immigration Services, appeared on CNN on Friday morning to discuss the latest immigration rule change. The new regulation replaces a court agreement that set a 20-day limit for holding children in detention.
CNN's Alisyn Camerota commented on the plan, saying "on one level it protects children, but it also exposes children to the overcrowding." She then showed Cuccinelli photos and video footage of crowded border facilities along the border.
"I know you don't want real answers. I know you don't want truth," Cuccinelli responded, adding that he wasn't going to "sit back and take that."
Cuccinelli argued that the plan is "a critical part of the solution" for overcrowding concerns and poor living conditions at border facilities.
"This solves the problem by demonstrating to families that are considering coming to the southern border illegally that they will be detained until their hearings can be held," he said.
Cuccinelli went on to say the administration hopes the regulation acts as a "deterrent" to illegal immigration because migrants now know they will be detained indefinitely rather than released into the United States during their court proceedings.
Earlier this week, Department of Homeland Security chief Kevin McAleenan announced the immigration rule changes in a press conference. McAleenan told reporters that the move was an effort to remove the incentive for immigrants to use children to gain entry into the U.S.
"No child should be a pawn in a scheme to manipulate our immigration system," he said.
The policy erases the guidelines set by the 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement, which required the government to keep migrant kids in the least restrictive setting possible. The court ruled that children could no longer be held indefinitely in detention centers and either had to be released to a family member or transferred to a licensed care facility. In more recent rulings overseeing the settlement, a federal judge banned the government from keeping migrant families with children in detention for more than 20 days.
President Trump said Wednesday that he is worried about the number of migrant children trying to cross the border and praised the new rule for keeping families together.
"I have the children on my mind. It bothers me very greatly," Trump told reporters.
A Border Patrol agent takes down personal data from Salvadorian mother Ana Esmeralda and her son Manuel Alexander, 2, after they were taken into custody on July 02, 2019 in Los Ebanos, Texas. The Trump administration will now detain migrant families together indefinitely, a new rule that officials say will deter illegal immigrants from crossing the southern border.
Now, under this new regulation, migrant family units will be held in custody together throughout their immigration court proceedings. The federal government will hold them in "family residential centers" which will provide healthcare, education for minors and resources for migrants to meet with lawyers and representatives.
McAleenan said the families are to remain in custody for an average of 50 days once the rule change is implemented. The Department of Homeland Security has already created three family residential centers, with a total of 2,500 to 3,000 beds.
Cuccinelli's claim that this new plan will help deter immigration by showing migrants they will be held in detention indefinitely is in direct contrast with Mcaleenan statement to reporters that the Trump administration has "no intent to hold families for a long period of time."
Still, Trump has praised the policy and told reporters that his administration will be adding more proposals to cut down on immigration to the U.S.
"I'm the one that kept the families together. With what we're doing now, we'll do even more of that, but it will make it almost impossible for people to come into our country illegally," Trump said.
