WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is defending the conditions of the border detention facilities visited by Vice President Mike Pence on Friday.
Trump tweeted Sunday, saying the children’s rooms were “well run and clean” while the men’s facilities were “clean but crowded.”
The president’s account flies in the face of images from the visit and accounts from journalists present during Pence’s tour of the McAllen, Texas, facility.
Hundreds of men were crowded in sweltering cages without cots. Some of the men said they were hungry and had been held in the foul-smelling caged room for 40 days or longer.
Pence’s tour was meant to show the administration is providing adequate care for migrants but needs more money.
The scene he witnessed, though, sparked new criticism of the conditions facing migrants.
Friday’s tour showed vividly, to politicians and the media, how well run and clean the children’s detention centers are. Great reviews! Failing @nytimes story was FAKE! The adult single men areas were clean but crowded - also loaded up with a big percentage of criminals......
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
.....Sorry, can’t let them into our Country. If too crowded, tell them not to come to USA, and tell the Dems to fix the Loopholes - Problem Solved!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
