King Claims He Drank from border Facility Toilet

“I actually went into that cell where it was reported that they were advised they had to drink out of the toilet. I took a drink out of there. And actually, pretty good!”

— Rep. Steve King (R-IA) told constituents at a town hall in Iowa that he drank out of a toilet at a migrant detention facility “to prove that criticisms of the conditions in those facilities are unfounded,” the Daily Beast reports.

Trump Diverts Funds from Disaster Relief to Border Detainment

$271 million

“The Trump administration is pulling $271 million in funding from the Department of Homeland Security, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Disaster Relief Fund, to pay for immigration detention space and temporary hearing locations for asylum-seekers who have been forced to wait in Mexico,” NBC News reports.

Three Trump Retreats in Three Weeks

3

First Read notes that in less than three weeks, President Trump has made three different retreats: Reaching a deal with Mexico to avert tariffs – a deal that largely consisted of actions that Mexico had already agreed to; backing down on military strikes against Iran for shooting down a U.S. drone; delaying his plan for nationwide raids to deport undocumented immigrants.

Twice as Many Say Trump Has Gone Too Far on Immigration

50%

A new Fox News poll finds half of American voters say the Trump administration has “gone too far” on immigration enforcement. The 50% who say enforcement of immigration laws has “gone too far” is more than double, 24%, those who say actions haven’t gone far enough. About one in five say the measures are about right. By a wide majority — 73% to 24% — Americans favor giving legal status to young people brought to the U.S. illegally as children, so-called Dreamers.

Trump Administration Suggests a Fee for Asylum Application

$50

“The Trump administration is considering charging immigrants a fee to apply for asylum protection in the United States,” BuzzFeed News reports. “The proposal, included in a not-yet-finalized draft regulation, would charge applicants, if they are already residing in the US, $50 to apply for asylum. Currently, there is no fee to enter an ‘affirmative asylum’ application. The fee would not apply to those who claim a fear of persecution at ports of entry or those who apply for the protections while in deportation proceedings. There would be no waiver of the fee for those who cannot afford to pay the $50.”