https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-us-separates-a-mother-and-daughter-fleeing-violence-in-congo/2018/03/11/98468802-2249-11e8-86f6-54bfff693d2b_story.html

We are not this. This is why we vote.

A YEAR ago, then-Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly said publicly that his department might separate children from parents caught crossing the border, including those fleeing violence and seeking asylum, as a punitive means of deterring others who might follow. Officials floated the idea again in December, having presented it to Mr. Kelly’s successor, Kirstjen Nielsen. Future families should be aware that “there are consequences to illegal entry,” one official told The Post.

Now, as immigration advocates document such cases occurring nationwide — some said to involve weeping children wrenched from their mothers’ and fathers’ arms — DHS officials profess outrage at suggestions that they would do such a thing “for reasons other than to protect the child.” Claims that the department would be so heartless should be regarded “with the level of skepticism they deserve,” said Tyler Houlton, a spokesman.

So the department stands accused of doing precisely what it said it might do, but assertions that it is actually doing so should be viewed skeptically?