On May 7, the Trump administration announced a policy of systematically separating child migrants from their mothers when they cross the border illegally as a group. It wasnt a secret. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, standing alongside Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Thomas Homan, announced the change at a press conference in San Diego , California, clarifying that the federal government would now prosecute mothers who bring their children to the United States on criminal immigration charges, while routing their children into the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement.

It was a profound change that marked a clear break from previous administrations. Shortly afterward, stories flooded the national press and state newspapers from reporters at federal criminal courts across the border, detailing the ramifications of a policy designed to split parents from their children. Public opinion responded accordingly a poll conducted on behalf of The Daily Beast found that just 27 percent of 1,000 respondents supported the family separations at the border.

To beat back the steady stream of negative press, President Donald Trump , administration officials and a few hapless Republicans in Congress rattled off a series of talking points wildly untethered from reality. Heres a roundup of the bogus lines.

Our Hands Are Tied Because Of A Court Order