"A Scene from a Zombie Apocalypse Movie": CBP and the Border (Part 2)

In this second episode to a two part mini series, Conall and Emerson discuss the role played by Customs and Border Protection and the Border Patrol in enforcing President Trump's immigration policies, and the squalid conditions in the CBP detention centers at the border that made such large headlines back in the summer. Among other things, we explore why conditions had deteriorated to such an extent at these facilities, and whether or not the phrase "concentration camp" can be said to apply. We use extensive accounts of Border Patrol agents and the Department of Homeland Security itself to corroborate the awful conditions at these facilities. 

Later in the episode, we go into an in-depth exploration of Stephen Miller's influence on Trump's immigration policies, and how he's been able to last so long in a White House filled with chaos and turnover. 

CORRECTIONS: At around the 1 hour mark, Conall got the refugee intake number set by the president for 2020 wrong. It's 18,000 refugees, down from 30,000 in 2019 and down even more from a record high of 110,000 under President Obama in 2016. 

At around the 55 minute mark, Conall implies that Honduras borders Mexico - it's close to Mexico, but does not actually border it. 

MAIN SOURCES CONSULTED (not a comprehensive list): 
https://www.propublica.org/article/a-border-patrol-agent-reveals-what-its-really-like-to-guard-migrant-children - Anonymous Border Patrol agent account 

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/28/world/americas/rio-grande-drowning-father-daughter.html - Article explores the impact left by the deaths of Oscar and Valeria Martinez on their family in El Salvador

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/07/06/us/migrants-border-patrol-clint.html - Deep dive into the conditions at the Clint, Texas CBP facility 

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/02/us/politics/border-center-migrant-detention.html - Article on the DHS's own report documenting CBP detention center conditions 


https://www.vox.com/2018/6/20/17484546/executive-order-family-separation-flores-settlement-agreement-immigration - Good explanation of Flores Agreement

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2019/06/26/photo-drowned-migrant-child-recalls-an-image-that-shocked-world/ - Discusses parallels between Oscar and Valeria Martinez' deaths and the death of the young Syrian child, Alan Kurdi in 2015. 

https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/cbp-security-agency/ - Explores Trump administration's designation of CBP as a "security agency", making it immune to FOIA requests