The United States President Donald Trump's administration "did not create a policy of separating families at the border," US Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen (pictured) told reporters at the White House on Monday, speaking on border security. She added that Congress "needs to fix this policy."
"We have a statutory responsibility that we take seriously to protect alien children... while enforcing our immigration laws," the secretary added. Asked whether the children separated from their families are used "as pawns" in order to get leverage for the border wall, the secretary said: "No, they are not."
The secretary underlined that president Trump continuously urged Congress to act in order to change the underlying reasons for the current situation. Moments after, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders stated that "the president wants to fix the system and we're committed to doing that." Earlier today, during his speech at the National Space Council, Trump blamed the Democratic Party for immigration issues, including the policy of separating families of illegal immigrants at the border