Melania “hates” what’s happening

WASHINGTON — First lady Melania Trump “hates” to see families separated at the border and hopes “both sides of the aisle” can reform the nation’s immigration laws, according to a statement Sunday about the controversy over separation of immigrant parents and children at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Mrs. Trump was making an unusual entry into a fierce political debate. She didn’t refer specifically to the Trump administration’s “no tolerance” policy, which was leading to a spike in children being separated from their families. Government statistics indicate that nearly 2,000 children were separated from their families over a six-week period in April and May.

A spokeswoman for the wife of President Donald Trump issued the statement after several days of images of crying children appearing on television and online.

“Mrs. Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform,” said Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for Mrs. Trump. “She believes we need to be a country that follows all laws, but also a country that governs with heart.”

While the statement suggested the matter was an issue for Congress, Democratic lawmakers and others have pointed out that no law mandates the separation of children and parents at the border.

A new Trump administration policy, which went into effect in May, sought to maximize criminal prosecutions of people caught trying to enter the U.S. illegally.

More adults were being jailed as a result, which led to their children being separated from them.

Trump said Friday, “I hate the children being taken away,” but he also falsely blamed Democrats for a law requiring it.