The eyes of many Texans are on the border today where there’s a court-imposed deadline for the Trump administration to reunite families separated under the so-called zero tolerance policy for illegal entry into the United States. The question on everyone’s mind is if the U.S. will meet this deadline.
Jay Root is a reporter for the Texas Tribune and has been covering this story from the U.S.-Mexico border. He doesn’t believe it’s possible for the government to meet the current deadline.
“They didn’t meet the last deadline – I know that in some cases maybe they have questions about whether somebody is actually the parent – in some cases they’re finding out that someone has already been deported,” Root says. “On the ground it seems and looks chaotic.”
Some are wondering about the penalties – or lack thereof – if the current deadline is missed again. When Root was in Port Isabel, he says he saw children being held overnight in the adult-only facility or being sent to a hotel because the facilities weren’t ready to release the parents.
“It’s just this mad scramble and I do think the government is trying to meet this deadline – but it’s so chaotic just trying to match the parents with the kids,” Root says.
Written by Amber Chavez.
