BORDER/ETHICS/IMMIGRATION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “You care, but does the President? Anytime a commander in chief faces that question, it’s a sure sign that something is wrong. But Donald Trump and his administration are finding their humanity under scrutiny in the harrowing saga of kids separated from their parents after illegally crossing the southern border. The administration’s handling of the crisis lacked many things: coherence, competence and a duty to the truth over a crisis the President caused and blamed on others. But there was something even more fundamental missing: compassion. Trump furthered that on Friday [6-22-18], claiming that Democrats were making up ‘stories of sadness and grief’ for political advantage…It’s still unclear whether the last few days will hurt the President in the long term. It could possibly test Trump’s view that he is bulletproof among his loyal base of supporters or prove to be a weak seam in his signature hardline immigration policy. And the separations issue is not the first time a President who prides himself on a strongman’s image has seemed to lack compassion. His trips to hurricane disaster zones last year were jarring at times. And his constant jabs at Sen. John McCain, an Arizona Republican who is battling brain cancer, strike many in Washington as callous.”
-Stephen Collinson, “The Trump administration’s compassion gap,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, June 22, 2018 12:03 pm