News / Society

Trump: Immigrant detention centers 'well run and clean'

Monday, 15 July 2019 7:12 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 15 July 2019 7:13 AM ]

Men stand in a US Immigration and Border Enforcement detention center in McAllen, Texas, Friday, July 12, 2019. (Photo via AP)

President Donald Trump claims that US immigrant detention centers are “well run and clean," despite the facilities’ appalling conditions as described by reporters.

Trump made the claims on Twitter Sunday two days after Mike Pence visited two foul-smelling and over-crowded detention centers in the state of Texas near the US-Mexico border.

Pence toured the McAllen Border Patrol station on Friday and a detention center for women and children in Donna, Texas near the border with Mexico.

When the caged migrants saw reporters arrive, many began shouting, saying they had been there for 40 days or more and they were hungry and wanted to brush their teeth.

A reporter with the Washington Post said the fenced cages were so crowded that it was impossible for all the men to lie on the concrete.

Nonetheless, Trump said that "Friday’s tour showed vividly, to politicians and the media, how well run and clean the children’s detention centers are.”

Friday’s tour showed vividly, to politicians and the media, how well run and clean the children’s detention centers are. Great reviews! Failing @nytimes story was FAKE! The adult single men areas were clean but crowded - also loaded up with a big percentage of criminals......
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019

He also said that if the centers were too crowded, “tell them not to come to USA,” blaming Democrats for the problem.

.....Sorry, can’t let them into our Country. If too crowded, tell them not to come to USA, and tell the Dems to fix the Loopholes - Problem Solved!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019

Pence's visit lasted 90 seconds, reports said. "Look, this is tough stuff," Pence said at a news conference after the tour. "I knew we'd see a system that is overcrowded," he said, adding, "It's overwhelmed.”

Pence then blamed Congress for the problems. “Congress has to act," he said.

The scenes that reporters had witnessed resembled what was found in a damning report delivered last week based on trips to Border Patrol facilities near the Rio Grande, including the station Pence visited.

The inspector general who wrote the report described the situation at the detention center as a "ticking time bomb."

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