It's a bit more nuanced. There are massive loopholes in the current asylum process that create a favorable outcome from anyone who tries. The current backlog i

It's a bit more nuanced. There are massive loopholes in the current asylum process that create a favorable outcome from anyone who tries. The current backlog is 600,000 cases. You have to wait until your case is heard to determine credible threat to life or whatever your claim is. Till then many disappear into society and are never seen again. Also 83% of kids didn't arrive at the border with their parents to begin with. They are accompanied by adults who are not their parents. The separation of kids from the adults during the waiting period for asylum affects 17% of kids who are actually with their parents when crossing over. Between october 2017 to now there has been a 315% increase of people pretending to be families in order to game the system, essentially using kids as a means of getting more humane treatment. The current outcry is a politically motivated PR campaign against the administration, who is faced with the extremely difficult task of dealing with criminals who are using children to shield themselves from strict consequences, and it seems to be working, thanks to the President's political opponents, who have knowingly taken the bait. If you wanted to "hack" your way into the USA the steps used to be 1) Sneak across border 2) If not caught, congrats 3) If caught, surrender and claim asylum 4) While waiting for your hearing, disappear 5) Bring kids along to maximize the chance of actually getting asylum, or getting more lenient treatment while being processed or waiting for your trial