Donald Trump

==== Family separation at border ====
{{Main|Trump administration family separation policy}}
{{multiple image
| direction = vertical
| width = 220
| image1 = Ursula (detention center) 1.png
| alt1 = Children sitting within a wire mesh compartment
| image2 = Ursula (detention center) 2.jpg
| alt2 = Children and juveniles in a wire mesh compartment, showing sleeping mats and thermal blankets on floor
| footer = Children sitting within a wire mesh compartment in the [[Ursula (detention center)|Ursula detention facility]] in [[McAllen, Texas]], June 2018
}}
The Trump administration separated more than 5,400 children of migrant families from their parents at the U.S.&ndash;Mexico border, a sharp increase in the number of family separations at the border starting from the summer of 2017.<ref>{{cite web|last=Pearle|first=Lauren|title=Trump administration admits thousands more migrant families may have been separated than estimated|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-administration-unsure-thousands-migrant-families-separated-originally/story?id=60797633|access-date=May 30, 2020|work=[[ABC News]]|date=February 5, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Spagat">{{cite web|last=Spagat|first=Elliot|date=October 25, 2019|title=Tally of children split at border tops 5,400 in new count|work=[[AP News]]|url=https://apnews.com/article/c654e652a4674cf19304a4a4ff599feb|access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref> In April 2018, the Trump administration announced a "[[Trump administration family separation policy|zero tolerance]]" policy whereby every adult suspected of [[illegal entry]] would be criminally prosecuted.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Davis|first1=Julie Hirschfeld|author-link1=Julie Hirschfeld Davis|last2=Shear|first2=Michael D.|author-link2=Michael D. Shear|title=How Trump Came to Enforce a Practice of Separating Migrant Families|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/16/us/politics/family-separation-trump.html|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=May 30, 2020|date=June 16, 2018}}</ref> This resulted in family separations, as the migrant adults were put in criminal detention for prosecution, while their children were separated as unaccompanied alien minors.<ref>{{cite web|last=Savage|first=Charlie|author-link=Charlie Savage (author)|title=Explaining Trump's Executive Order on Family Separation|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/20/us/politics/family-separation-executive-order.html|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=May 30, 2020|date=June 20, 2018}}</ref> Administration officials described the policy as a way to deter illegal immigration.<ref name="Domonoske">{{cite web|last1=Domonoske|first1=Camila|last2=Gonzales|first2=Richard|date=June 19, 2018|title=What We Know: Family Separation And 'Zero Tolerance' At The Border|work=[[NPR]]|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/06/19/621065383/what-we-know-family-separation-and-zero-tolerance-at-the-border|access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref>

The policy of family separations was unprecedented in previous administrations and sparked public outrage.<ref name="Domonoske" /><ref>{{cite web|last=Epstein|first=Jennifer|title=Donald Trump's family separations bedevil GOP as public outrage grows|url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/donald-trump-s-family-separations-bedevil-gop-as-public-outrage-grows-20180618-p4zm9h.html |access-date=May 30, 2020|via=''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]''|work=[[Bloomberg News]]|date=June 18, 2018}}</ref> Trump falsely asserted that his administration was merely following the law, blaming Democrats, despite the separations being his administration's policy.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/15/us/politics/trump-immigration-separation-border.html|title=Separated at the Border From Their Parents: In Six Weeks, 1,995 Children|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 15, 2018|access-date=June 18, 2018|last=Davis|first=Julie Hirschfeld|author-link=Julie Hirschfeld Davis}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/immigration-border-crisis/despite-claims-gop-immigration-bill-would-not-end-family-separation-n883701|title=Despite claims, GOP immigration bill would not end family separation, experts say|work=[[NBC News]]|date=June 15, 2018|access-date=June 18, 2018|last=Sarlin|first=Benjy}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Davis|first1=Julie Hirschfeld|author-link1=Julie Hirschfeld Davis|last2=Nixon|first2=Ron|author-link2=Ron Nixon|date=May 29, 2018|title=Trump Officials, Moving to Break Up Migrant Families, Blame Democrats|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/29/us/politics/trump-democrats-immigrant-families.html|access-date=December 29, 2020}}</ref>

Although Trump originally argued that the separations could not be stopped by an executive order, he acceded to intense public objection and signed an executive order on June 20, 2018, mandating that migrant families be detained together unless "there is a concern" doing so would pose a risk to the child.<ref>{{cite web|last=Beckwith|first=Ryan Teague|title=Here's What President Trump's Immigration Order Actually Does|url=https://time.com/5317703/trump-family-separation-policy-executive-order/|access-date=May 30, 2020|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=June 20, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 20, 2018|first1=Michael D.|last1=Shear|author-link1=Michael D. Shear|first2=Abby|last2=Goodnough|first3=Maggie|last3=Haberman|author-link3=Maggie Haberman|title=Trump Retreats on Separating Families, but Thousands May Remain Apart|access-date=June 20, 2018|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/20/us/politics/trump-immigration-children-executive-order.html}}</ref> On June 26, 2018, Judge [[Dana Sabraw]] concluded that the Trump administration had "no system in place to keep track of" the separated children, nor any effective measures for family communication and reunification;<ref>{{cite web|last=Hansler|first=Jennifer|title=Judge says government does a better job of tracking 'personal property' than separated kids|url=https://cnn.com/2018/06/27/politics/family-separation-federal-judge-personal-property-comment/|access-date=May 30, 2020|work=[[CNN]]|date=June 27, 2018}}</ref> Sabraw ordered for the families to be reunited and family separations stopped except in limited circumstances.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jun/27/us-immigration-must-reunite-families-separated-at-border-federal-judge-rules|title=Judge orders US to reunite families separated at border within 30 days|last=Walters|first=Joanna|date=June 27, 2018|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref> After the federal-court order, the Trump administration separated more than a thousand migrant children from their families; the [[ACLU]] contended that the Trump administration had abused its discretion and asked Sabraw to more narrowly define the circumstances warranting separation.<ref name="Spagat" />