ICE mocks deportation 'sob story' on '60 Minutes' — and dismantles its narrative with one inconvenient detail
The DHS general counsel pulled the file and found something very odd.
The Trump administration is not impressed by a "sob story" put out by "60 Minutes" meant to undermine the mass deportation efforts undertaken in the president's second term.
The story that aired Sunday highlights the struggles of the family of Moussa Diawara, a 57-year-old man who was deported in July and claims he eventually ended up in his native country of Mali. During the segment, his wife, son, and daughter tearfully speak to him while they continue to reside in Texas.
'Just in case you’re wondering how bad the immigration fraud problem is.'
A judge ruled in 2012 that Diawara, who had overstayed a visa, could be deported, but not to Mali after he claimed that he would be persecuted there, CBS News reported. Diawara was deported to Ghana, and soon after his arrival, Ghanaian officials sent him to Mali, he claims.
He indicated to "60 Minutes" that he feared persecution in Mali, a Muslim-majority country, because he had converted to Christianity. He eventually escaped to another African country but asked CBS not to identify it, the outlet reported.
The story was clearly intended to elicit sympathy from viewers, but the narrative did not survive a fact-check from James Percival, the general counsel of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security who appeared in the segment.
"This illegal alien is @60Minutes poster child for what it claims are wrongful deportations," wrote Percival in a statement on social media Sunday night. "I pulled his file. His claimed reason for fearing Mali was that he is 'gay,' just in case you’re wondering how bad the immigration fraud problem is."
Percival suggested the family's sob story contradicted the father's claim that he feared persecution as a gay man.
A post from Immigration and Customs Enforcement reinforced the point and mocked the news program.
"The 60 Minutes sob story tonight highlighted an illegal alien and his wife and two children. One problem. The illegal alien claimed he was a HOMOSEXUAL in order to try and dodge deportation to Mali," read the statement.
"You literally cannot make this up," ICE added.
"60 Minutes" noted on social media and in the segment that the DHS had "questioned the credibility of Diawara's arguments for fearing persecution in Mali," without providing further details.
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"I absolutely believe with all of my heart that these third-country removals have stopped crimes from happening and kept Americans safer and that is our fundamental obligation at the Department of Homeland Security," Percival said on "60 Minutes."
The report said that about 25,000 people who had been deported from the U.S. had been sent to countries other than their country of origin.
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