Kevin McAleenan, the Commissioner of US Customs and Border Protection, was on with Chris Cuomo explaining the situation at the border yesterday and what they expect going forward.
The first part of the interview is very informative of what happened yesterday. McAleenan even reveals that the actual number of migrants trying to breach the border was over 1,000. He says they tried to breach at the San Ysidro port of entry as well as multiple points across a two-mile stretch of the border fence and the Tijuana river channel.
About 5 minutes into the interview Cuomo starts to grill McAleenan about the tear gas used against women and children. Just like Chief Patrol Agent Rodney Scott this morning, McAleenan explains that they had to use tear gas to disrupt the group of men who were throwing rocks at the border agents. He said they weren’t throwing them at women and children, but rather at the men who throwing rocks. And just like Scott, he lamented women bringing children into this dangerous situation.
You’ll notice during the part of the interview the chyron on CNN said that Trump FALSELY claimed that tear gas wasn’t used on women and children. But McAleenan made clear that they were NOT targeting the women and children and it was unfortunate they were even there trying to rush the border while this was happening.
What really got my goat was near the end, when the arrogant Cuomo suggested to McAleenan that they tell the border patrol not to use tear gas on women and children. At this point I’m yelling at my TV “YOU STUPID MORON HE JUST TOLD YOU THEY WEREN’T USING IT ON WOMEN AND CHILDREN”. It’s like Cuomo doesn’t even listen to his own interview, or doesn’t believe the man telling him the truth.
But I gotta hand it to McAleenan, he was a class act through the entire interview. Much more so than I would have been.
You should definitely watch the whole interview above. But keep some windex handy to get the spit on your monitor when you yell at Cuomo.