BORDER DISORDER

Government gives differing accounts of plans to house migrants on U. S. military bases; House leaders delay vote on immigration package

McALLEN, Texas — The U. S. government wrestled with the ramifications Thursday of President Donald Trump’s move to stop separating families at the border, with no clear plan to reunite the more than 2,300 children already taken from their parents and Congress again failing to take action on immigration reform.

In a day of confusion and conflicting reports, the Trump administration began drawing up plans to house as many as 20,000 migrants on U. S. military bases. But officials gave differing accounts as to whether those beds would be for children or for entire families. The Justice Department also went to court in an attempt to overturn a decades- old settlement that limits to 20 days the amount of time migrant children can be locked up with their families.

Meanwhile, the federal public defender’s office for the region that covers cases from El Paso to San Antonio said Thursday the U. S. attorney’s office would be dismissing cases in which parents were charged with illegally entering or re- entering the country and were subsequently separated from their children.

“Going forward, they will no longer bring criminal charges against a parent or parents entering the United States if they have their child with them,” wrote Maureen Scott Franco, the federal public defender for the Western District of Texas, in an email shown to The Associated Press.

In Washington, the House killed a hardright immigration bill Thursday and Republican leaders delayed a planned vote on a compromise GOP package, with party members fiercely divided on the issue. Democrats oppose both measures.

The rejected bill would have curbed legal immigration and bolstered border security but would not have granted a pathway to citizenship to “Dreamers” who arrived in the country illegally as children.

First lady Melania Trump made a surprise visit to a McAllen detention center that is housing some of the children. She told the children to “be kind and nice to each other.”

She made waves while boarding the flight to McAllen in a green military- style jacket with the message “I really don’t care, do u?” on the back.

Asked about it, her spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said: “It’s a jacket. There was no hidden message.”

Mrs. Trump was wearing a different jacket when the plane landed.

DAVID J. PHILLIP/ AP Angui Funes ( right) sits with her brother, Jesus, after crossing the border back to Reynosa, Mexico, Thursday. The family, who was seeking asylum, said they were told by officials they would be separated, so they voluntarily returned to Mexico.