BROWNSVILLE, TX - JUNE 22: A crying Honduran woman and her child wait along the border bridge after being denied into the Texas city of Brownsville which has become dependent on the daily crossing into and out of Mexico on June 22, 2018 in Brownsville, Texas. Immigration has once again been put in the spotlight as Democrats and Republicans spar over the detention of children and families seeking asylum at the border. Before President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday that halts the practice of separating families who were seeking asylum, over 2,300 immigrant children had been separated from their parents in the zero-tolerance policy for border crossers. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) BROWNSVILLE, TX - JUNE 22: A crying Honduran woman and her child wait along the border bridge after being denied into the Texas city of Brownsville which has become dependent on the daily crossing into and out of Mexico on June 22, 2018 in Brownsville, Texas. Immigration has once again been put in the spotlight as Democrats and Republicans spar over the detention of children and families seeking asylum at the border. Before President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday that halts the practice of separating families who were seeking asylum, over 2,300 immigrant children had been separated from their parents in the zero-tolerance policy for border crossers. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Young migrant children, whose faces can not be shown, are seen at the US Customs and Border Protection Facility in Tucson, Arizona during a visit by US First Lady Melania Trump, June 28, 2018. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images) U.S. Border Patrol agents take a father and son from Honduras into custody near the U.S.-Mexico border on June 12, 2018 near Mission, Texas. The asylum seekers were then sent to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) processing center for possible separation. U.S. border authorities are executing the Trump administration's zero tolerance policy towards undocumented immigrants. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions also said that domestic and gang violence in immigrants' country of origin would no longer qualify them for political-asylum status. John Moore/Getty Images You heard her cry for her mom. See their reunion U.S. Border Patrol agents take a father and son from Honduras into custody near the U.S.-Mexico border on June 12, 2018 near Mission, Texas. The asylum seekers were then sent to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) processing center for possible separation. U.S. border authorities are executing the Trump administration's zero tolerance policy towards undocumented immigrants. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions also said that domestic and gang violence in immigrants' country of origin would no longer qualify them for political-asylum status. John Moore/Getty Images SAN DIEGO, CA - JULY 16: An American flag flies along a section of the U.S.-Mexico border fence on July 16, 2018 in San Diego, California. The entire Southwest border saw 34,114 U.S. Border Patrol apprehensions in the month of June compared with 40,338 in May. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) (CNN) — First lady Melania Trump touched down in McAllen, Texas, Thursday for a publicly unannounced and hastily planned trip to get a firsthand look at the crisis affecting immigrant families at the US border. “I want to thank you for your hard work, your compassion and your kindness,” the first lady said at a roundtable briefing at Upbring New Hope Children’s Shelter, with doctors and medical staff, social workers and other experts on hand. “She wants to see what’s real,” the first lady’s spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham told CNN during a news briefing en route to Texas, explaining Trump’s decision to visit. Trump becomes the first member of the President’s inner circle to personally witness the situation that has captured the country’s attention. Something else that grabbed attention: the jacket the first lady donned as she left Washington. MANDEL NGAN/AFP/AFP/Getty Images She wore an olive green jacket, which said on the back: “I really don’t care. Do U?” in white graffiti-style lettering. Trump was not wearing the jacket when she landed in McAllen. The $39 jacket is last season Zara. The first lady’s team said there was no hidden meaning behind the sartorial choice. “It’s a jacket. There was no hidden message. After today’s important visit to Texas, I hope the media isn’t going to choose to focus on her wardrobe,” Grisham said. Touring in Texas The facility opened to the first lady was of course selected keeping in mind press would be accompanying her. Other such facilities around the country have denied access to Democratic lawmakers and media. While photos and audio from the unfolding crisis on the border have shown tender age children crying for their parents, Trump, CNN and other members of the media were at a facility with children aged 12-17. The portion of the trip designed to show a family processing facility was canceled due to severe flash flooding in the area. Upbring New Hope Children’s Shelter, part of Lutheran Social Services of the South, is a Department of Health and Human services-overseen facility, which operates with the assistance of HHS funding. Trump was greeted by Upbring CEO Dr. Kurt Senske, who outlined Upbring’s five markers of success: safety, life skills, health, education and vocation. The facility opened in 2014 and currently houses 55 children. Of the children – 27 boys and 28 girls – approximately 10% arrived in the United States with their families and have since been separated. Trump, during a roundtable with officials, asked how often the children speak to their families by telephone, how they are emotionally cared for on arrival and on average how long they stay at the facility before being placed elsewhere. The first lady stopped to visit with children in three separate classrooms during her tour. “Where are you from?” she asked several of the kids, along with “How old are you?” and “Have you made friends?” The children answered, some via a teacher translating from Spanish to English. The children are “usually distraught” when they arrive, Trump was told by officials, but “when they see the environment, they start relaxing.” Basic needs are taken care of – showers, clothing, food, medical care. “The first 24 hours are crucial,” a staff member told the first lady. How children are processed 00:59 - Source: CNN Melania Trump weighs in on immigration An administration official briefing the media before the visit said most children at an HHS-funded and regulated facility such as this one remain there for approximately 58 days, receiving medical, dental, vision and psychological care, as well as what the official described as the ability to be inside a “safe and happy environment.” The official emphasized the predominant mission at this stage of the process, for unaccompanied children is to place them back with appropriate sponsors. Those sponsors can be their parents, if the parents are not involved in the judicial or criminal process or they can be other approved family members already living inside the United States. If neither of those options is possible, which is the case in about 10% of the unaccompanied children, they are placed with vetted foster families or volunteers. All of this information was something the first lady wanted to learn in person, said Grisham, who told the media Trump informed her staff – and her husband, President Donald Trump – that she had decided she needed to see for herself the family intake and unaccompanied children facilities. The facilities have dominated the news for days on end, causing heated political battles from the White House to Capitol Hill, ricocheting around the world in an uproar of disbelief and consternation. A readout of the trip from the White House on Thursday night included this statement from the first lady: “Today’s visit impacted me greatly. I was very impressed with the center and the hardworking staff and leadership there – and thank them for all of their hard work. The children were eager to learn and were kind and in good spirits. Spending time with them reinforces the fact that these kids are in this situation as a direct result of adult actions.<doc-sep>JUST IN: First lady Melania Trump arrives in Texas "to take part in briefings and tours at a nonprofit social services center for children who have entered the United States illegally," White House says. https://t.co/Xq0uXKKiW4 pic.twitter.com/cM98JDoouh — ABC News (@ABC) June 21, 2018 EMBED >More News Videos Melania Trump visits immigrant detainment facilities in Texas EMBED >More News Videos First lady Melania Trump visits immigrant children at U.S.-Mexico border. MCALLEN, Texas -- Melania Trump is visiting two Texas facilities housing some of the more than 2,300 migrant children sent by the U.S. government after their families entered the country illegally.The first lady's visit to Upbring New Hope Children's Center on Thursday comes after President Donald Trump signed an executive order halting the practice of separating families. However, his policy of criminally prosecuting illegal border-crossers remains.Mrs. Trump, whose focus is on children, may have helped encourage her husband to act.The first lady said earlier through her spokeswoman that she "hates" to see families separated at the border. A White House official followed up Wednesday, saying Mrs. Trump had been making her opinion known to the president that he needed to act to keep migrant families together.<doc-sep>Families Divided More in this series First lady Melania Trump made an unannounced trip to the border on Thursday, visiting a children's shelter in McAllen. "She supports family reunification," said Stephanie Grisham, the first lady’s communications director, according to a pool report from The Dallas Morning News. “She thinks that it’s important that children stay with their families.” Trump toured the Upbring New Hope Children’s Shelter, a facility officials said currently houses 55 children between the ages of 12 and 17, according to the pool report. Six of those children had been separated from their parents; the rest had arrived unaccompanied, the officials said. Trump held a roundtable discussion livestreamed by The Washington Post with shelter workers before the tour, thanking them for their “heroic work” taking care of the children and asking how she could help “these children reunite with their families as quickly as possible.” The message, “Acts of kindness make me bloom,” was printed in bright yellow letters on the wall behind Trump. When asked how often the children get to speak with their parents or family, program director Rogelio de la Cerda Jr. told Trump they get a 10-minute phone call twice a week. “We provide a lot of structure,” de la Cerda said. “We try to educate them, we try to assimilate them to what the public school environment is like. They refer to this as a shelter, but this is their home.” At the shelter, Trump visited three classrooms, shaking hands and asking the children questions about themselves, according to the pool report. One child told her she’d been there for two months. “Be kind and nice to each other, OK?” Trump told the children. In one classroom, “Welcome! First Lady” was written on a white board draped with a hand-painted U.S. flag. A child in the classroom told Trump they had been learning how to celebrate the Fourth of July. The first lady also planned to tour the Ursula Border Patrol Processing Center, but the visit was canceled because of flooding at the center. As of Wednesday, more than 2,300 immigrant children had been separated from their parents who crossed the border illegally. Changing course on his administration’s “zero tolerance” policy, President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday afternoon halting separations. The first lady began planning her trip on Tuesday, Grisham told reporters. Grisham said she was not sure whether the first lady had been aware of the president’s upcoming executive order. “This was her decision,” Grisham said. “She told [the president,] ‘I’m headed down to Texas,’ and he supported it.” Disclosure: Upbring has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.<doc-sep>
Without telling anyone in advance, first lady Melania Trump jetted off to Texas Thursday to check out for herself the detained children separated from their migrant parents at the U.S.-Mexico border. "I'm looking forward to seeing the children," Trump said when she arrived at Upbring New Hope Children Center, run by the Lutheran Social Services of the South in McAllen, Texas, at the far southeastern border with Mexico. Her spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, announced her trip in an email to USA TODAY only after she arrived in Texas. "First Lady Melania Trump has arrived in Texas to take part in briefings and tours at a nonprofit social services center for children who have entered the United States illegally and a customs and border patrol processing center," the statement said. "Her goals are to thank law enforcement and social services providers for their hard work, lend support and hear more on how the administration can build upon the already existing efforts to reunite children with their families." News cameras showed the first lady, dressed casually in slacks and tennis shoes and accompanied by Human Services secretary Alex Azar, speaking with officials at the center, thanking them for "all the heroic work you do every day." She said she was there because of her concern that thousands of children, many of them infants, have been separated from their parents who are being detained for illegally crossing the border or presenting themselves there to ask for asylum. She said she wanted to learn more about how these children can be reunited with their parents "as quickly as possible." One of her first questions: How often do the detained kids get to speak with their parents or family? Late Thursday, her office released a statement on how she viewed the trip. “Today’s visit impacted me greatly,” her statement said. "Spending time with (the detained children) reinforces the fact that these kids are in this situation as a direct result of adult actions." She again called on Congress to do something about "common-sense immigration reform that secures our borders and keeps families together.” After enduring days of excoriating criticism of his separation policy, accompanied by pictures, video and audio of wailing children and desperate parents, President Donald Trump reversed course on Wednesday, declaring that migrant parents and children would no longer be separated, although it's not clear how those already dispersed around the country will be reunited. Melania Trump, plus the four living former first ladies, all expressed dismay about the separation policy to one degree or another. Former first lady Laura Bush outright called it "cruel" and "immoral." The current first lady, in a statement issued by Grisham, echoed her husband's comments condemning the separations but falsely blaming Democrats for the policy. After the president decided to drop the separations, Trump himself said he was swayed by arguments of his elder daughter, Ivanka Trump, and by his wife. Melania Trump first weighed in Sunday, issuing a statement that she "hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform. She believes we need to be a country that follows all laws, but also a country that governs with heart." Later, word emerged from the White House that the first lady was encouraging her husband to do more to help families stay together, either on his own or by working with Congress. Melania has spent the past week sharing her opinion with Trump, according to a person familiar with her thinking but not authorized to speak publicly. Melania became more vocal in the past few days, recognizing this issue was not likely going to be changed through legislation, which was what she had hoped would happen, the person said. The McAllen trip was characteristic of the first lady: Unexpected, unconventional and shrouded by secrecy until the last moment. The press pool traveling with her didn't know their destination until her plane took off and Grisham spoke to reporters. Grisham said Trump asked her staff to arrange the trip on Tuesday, and it was "100 percent" the first lady's idea, not the president's. She was not "sent" there by the president, Grisham said. In fact, the trip was her idea before he signed his executive order Wednesday, she said. "She knew what she wanted to do and she told us....She wanted to see everything for herself…. She supports family reunification. She thinks that it’s important that children stay with their families," Grisham said.