Obama: I Have Directly Told Central America 'Do Not Send Your Children to the Borders'

In an interview that aired on “Good Morning America” on ABC on Friday, President Barack Obama was asked by George Stephanopoulos about the ongoing crisis at the border caused by the influx of Central American youth overwhelming the U.S. Border Patrol and its resources.

Stephanopoulos asked Obama if he thought he had done enough in voicing a warning not come, to which Obama insisted he had.

Partial transcript as follows:

STEPHANOPOULOS: You mentioned immigration. There’s a humanitarian crisis on the border. Some of your critics have said you need to speak out directly to the people of Central America and say, ‘Don’t come. If you come, you will be deported.’

OBAMA: We’ve done that. The problem is, under current law, once the kids come across the border, there’s a system in which we’re supposed to process them, take care of them, until we can send them back.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Is your message don’t come?

OBAMA: Our message is absolutely don’t send your children unaccompanied, on trains or through a bunch of smugglers. That is our direct message to families in Central America. Do not send your children to the borders. If they do make it, they’ll get sent back. More importantly, they may not make it.

Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor