The conflating of the two situations. I think our immigration policies are abhorrent, and Biden is not my first pick for president, but the current policy is not anything at all like Trump’s policy.

Any reports of the federal government’s separating migrant families come under added scrutiny after the Trump administration systematically separated more than 5,000 migrant children from their parents in 2017 and 2018 to deter families from crossing the border illegally.

The families Wise documented were only temporarily separated while they were in CBP custody, which typically lasts only a few days because of a federal court order requiring their release within 72 hours. The Trump administration, on the other hand, separated families in CBP custody and then sent the children to shelters run by Health and Human Services with no way for parents to learn where they were.

“The situations described within the report are completely different from previous policies of separating families," the CBP spokesperson added. "CBP is committed to family unity: our policies prioritize the safety and wellbeing of children and ensure that families are released out of CBP custody together.”