Trump's policy of effectively kidnapping kids at the border by separating them from their parents isn't just morally reprehensible, it's also a big failure.
At times when they're not dishonestly blaming Democrats for the policy, Trump and his advisers say it's a deterrent intended to dissuade immigrants from crossing the border.
But did they really believe that when they drafted the policy? According to internal documents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) obtained by CNN, yes. They thought this would accomplish something that hasn't been accomplished at all.
The documents, which refer to the effort as the "Prosecution Initiative," demonstrate that in early April, days after President Donald Trump announced he would send the National Guard to the border and after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced his offices would prosecute all illegal crossings referred to the Justice Department, Homeland Security staff predicted that the deterrent effects of the policies would be visible quickly.
"The full impact of policy initiatives are not fully realized for 2-3 weeks following public messaging -- however, some migrants already underway may temporarily halt to determine the effects of the new policy," the document states.
In the time since the policy was implemented, border crossings have actually increased by 5 percent so, by the Trump regime's own measure, this policy is a big, stupid failure.
But they're not going to correct their course. They aren't going to admit it's a cruel failure. Trump isn't going to stop separating families just like he was never going to uphold the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Trump has turned this program into a referendum on himself now and his loyal, cult-like supporters will emulate anything he says or does.
This is at the bottom of the pile of immediate concerns, but federal officials who spoke to NBC News say the government is currently holding over 11,700 children and may hold as many as 30,000 by the end of August if the current rate of separation continues. I don't know what that's going to cost, but none of this is free. The Trump regime will likely end up spending hundreds of millions of dollars on this policy if not a billion before all is said and done.
You may call that ironic considering that anti-immigration hardliners say immigrants cost American citizens too much money. Trump's cruel policy will come at an enormous moral and financial cost.