Chris Meekins, deputy assistant Health and Human Services secretary for preparedness and response, filed a declaration that he is fully committed to meeting the deadline. However, he does not believe “the placing of children into such situations is consistent with the mission of HHS or my core values.”
U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw took umbrage at Meekins’ statement, disputing the official’s interpretation of his orders and saying that safe reunification could and will occur by July 26.
“It is clear from Mr. Meekins’s declaration that HHS either does not understand the court’s orders or is acting in defiance of them,” the judge wrote late Friday. “At a minimum, it appears he is attempting to provide cover to defendants for their own conduct in the practice of family separation, and the lack of foresight and infrastructure necessary to remedy the harms caused by that practice.”
Sabraw, an appointee of President George W. Bush, said Meekins’ statement calls into question his comments in court hours earlier that the administration was acting in good faith.
Sabraw said in court Friday that the administration had largely complied with orders but, at the same time, he indicated he will be monitoring its actions ahead of the deadline.
The judge said the administration must provide a list of names of parents in immigration custody and their children by Monday and complete background checks for them by Thursday. He scheduled four hearings over the next two weeks for updates, including one on Monday.
“The task is laborious, but can be accomplished in the time and manner prescribed,” he wrote in his order.
Read Judge Sabraw’s most recent order below:
So Chris Meekins was a Chief of Staff for which Congresscritter? Advised on Health Policy to whom? How does a former employee of an investment bank research analyst on healthcare and insurance know anything about kids?
And dude you needed to state “my core values” as “my sincerely held beliefs,” you broke with the agreed upon verbage.
But, ignorance of the law is no excuse, right!
With the civil rights movement, the federal government enforced court orders. Who is going to enforce them if the trumpies tell the courts to piss up a rope? And that is not meant to be snark.
This is a tough call for me. This Administration is comprised, top to bottom, of morons wholly ignorant of law, history, or really anything, but they’re also malicious criminals flouting laws and norms. Shall we just say both and let him keep poor lonely Manafort company?
Ok on another note they found the one Trump political appointee that thinks he knows how to vet, the value of vetting, but doesn’t understand a court order.