The child separation issue perfectly highlights political dysfunction

[Some Guy]

Trying to keep this focused on the operations of our government here.

So i think we can all agree that the situation arose by the Trump admin enforcing the laws/judgments in place to the letter of the law, which includes the 20 day child separation rule. You can argue that the Trump admin is gleefully doing it as a deterrent but that's not what this is about.

It's the legislature's job to legislate (i.e. determine the laws) and it's the executive branches job to execute (and enforce) said laws. The Trump admin is enforcing the law to the letter. Those who oppose it are asking the executive branch to do 1 of 2 things:

1. Ignore/break the law
2. Sign executive order to change operating procedures

Either "solution" requires violating how our government is designed to work. Yet, you have Schumer saying he's not willing to pass a law for this, because it's Trump's responsibility. You have the Senate minority leader admitting that he's not willing to do his job in passing laws to solve problems, and instead, is willing to grant that power to the president. The same president that he and other claim is a tyrant, is out of control, is crazy... he wants Trump deciding immigration law, which is now part of the executive branch's powers.

It goes both ways of course when it comes to both parties. But it's crystal clear that senators and representatives are only getting more and more willing to ignore their responsibility as legislators because it's more politically expedient to complain about what someone else is doing rather than mobilizing your own power to do something about it. It's led to a more and more powerful executive branch, more unaccountable agencies under the president, and more and more problems created and/or persisted in the name of political sparring.

 

[Some Guy]

I'd add that on the republican side, it really only would have taken someone to raise a flag, say "hey, this is going on and it's a little fucked up. We've got congress, let's propose a law to change how this works." But they didn't. It's been going on for a long time but they didn't see it as enough of an issue to do something about it because it's a political winner with their base. Only since the media manufactured a firestorm out of it are the republicans motivated to do something about it to try to win/salvage some political points on it.

 

[Auld Phart]

There are already numerous threads on the incarcerated children.

Find one, add your comments there.

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