The Free Press, Mankato

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

We won’t mince words or muddy the facts about the deplorable actions recently taken by the Trump administration to separate young children from their parents who face a “zero tolerance” policy on border crossing.

The policy is immoral. The action is inhumane and the Trump administration has further eroded the American reputation for liberty and justice to a new low.

Children as young as four years old and nursing babies are being separated from their parents as the parents face possible charges of illegal immigration at the Mexican border. The children are detained in cage-like areas and some could be heard crying out for their “Papa.”

This has not been done before and it’s not who we are. It began as a new policy emanating from the Trump administration in April that required every border crossing to be prosecuted via criminal court procedures. The law does not allow children to be detained and arrested like parents, so the children must be removed from parental custody.

But the decision to prosecute under criminal courts was a Trump administration choice. Previous administrations of both parties used civil court procedures where widespread and indiscriminate separation were not hallmarks of the policy.

The Trump administration reaction to outrage about the policy amounts to a doubling down on immorality and inhumanity. They blamed Democrats in Congress for not somehow being able to change the policy as the minority party. The Trump administration went further saying if Democrats would only vote for GOP immigration policy, the kids wouldn’t have to face this psychological trauma.

Trump is using children as pawns in a political game. That’s disgusting and evil.

Outrage at the policy is coming from all corners and Republicans in Congress were reportedly setting up an immediate meeting to come up with a legislative solution to the administration policy. But some Republicans placed blame squarely where it belongs — on Trump. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, told the Associated Press the White House had the power to immediately change the policy. “I don’t think there’s any question about that,” he said.

America can’t take back this abhorrent behavior condemned around the world. The United Nations said the policy violated the human rights of children. We can only try to make right an egregious error in judgment and loss of moral compass by those leading our nation.

Republicans in Congress need to condemn the Trump administration practice and work to end it immediately.