Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) has publicly refuted what he calls “misleading” reports concerning the deportation of the mothers of three U.S. citizen children by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The controversy stems from reports that the children, ages 7, 4, and 2, were involved in deportation proceedings alongside their mothers, who had entered the United States illegally from Honduras.
The initial reports, published by outlets such as The Associated Press, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and NPR, led to significant outrage among pro-immigration activists and critics of the Trump administration, with headlines suggesting the U.S. citizen children themselves were deported.
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During an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” with Kristen Welker, Rubio clarified the situation.
“On the headline, that’s a misleading headline,” Rubio stated. “Three U.S. citizens ages 4, 7 and 2 were not deported. Their mothers, who were illegally in this country, were deported. The children went with their mothers. The children are U.S. citizens; they can return to the United States if their father, or someone here, wants to claim them. But, ultimately, those who were deported were their mothers, who were here illegally. The children just went with their mothers. It’s not like you guys make it sound like ICE agents kicked down the door and grabbed the 2-year-old and threw him on an airplane. That’s misleading. That’s just not true.”
One detail reported by The Washington Post involved the 4-year-old child, who reportedly suffers from Stage 4 cancer, boarding the deportation plane without necessary medication or the ability to contact a doctor.
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Rubio argued that the administration faced a difficult choice.
“If someone is in this country unlawfully, illegally, that person gets deported,” Rubio continued. “If that person is with a 2-year-old child or has a 2-year-old child, says ‘I want to take my child with me,’ well then, you have two choices. You can say, ‘yes, of course you can take your child, whether they’re a citizen or not, because it’s your child,’ or you can say, ‘yes, you can go. But your child must stay behind.’ And then your headlines would read, ‘U.S. holding hostage [a] 2-year-old, 4-year-old, 7-year-old, while mother deported.’ So, the parents make that choice.”
He suggested that had the administration opted to keep the children in the U.S., they would have faced accusations of holding them “hostage.” Rubio emphasized that, as U.S. citizens, the children retain the right to return to the United States.
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The incident has amplified concerns among some Democrats and left-leaning commentators about the possibility of the Trump administration engaging in the deportation of U.S. citizens, which would be a direct violation of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, guaranteeing birthright citizenship.
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