• Marco Rubio defends deportation of three U.S. citizen children alongside their undocumented mothers.
• He insists that the deported children can return to the U.S. if family members claim them.
• Legal and humanitarian concerns are raised regarding the lack of due process in these cases.
• Criticism emerges from legal advocates who highlight the rights of vulnerable children being overlooked.
• The incident has sparked broader debates about immigration policies under the Trump administration.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently defended the actions of U.S. authorities regarding the deportation of three children who are U.S. citizens, stating that their mothers, who were in the country illegally, were the ones deported. Rubio emphasized that the children chose to accompany their mothers and dismissed claims of due process violations as misleading, asserting, “If someone’s in this country unlawfully, illegally, that person gets deported,” according to Forbes, Salon, and HuffPost.

The deported children, aged 2, 4, and 7, were taken into custody during a routine immigration check-in and subsequently deported to Honduras. Reports indicate that one of the children, a 4-year-old battling Stage 4 cancer, was separated from her medication during the process. Attorneys representing the families argue that the mothers were not given adequate options and were effectively forced to bring their children with them, highlighting a lack of due process rights for citizens, according to Forbes and HuffPost.

Rubio’s comments have generated backlash from legal advocates, with the ACLU of Louisiana’s director asserting that the deportations represent a clear violation of constitutional rights. “I don’t know how much more of a blatant or clear constitutional violation there can be than deporting U.S. citizens without due process,” said Alanah Odoms, according to Salon and HuffPost.

Furthermore, the former director of ICE, Tom Homan, echoed Rubio's stance, stating that the mothers chose to take their U.S. citizen children with them during deportation and asserted that having a U.S. citizen child does not exempt anyone from immigration laws. He claimed that the responsibility lies with the individuals who entered the country illegally, according to HuffPost.

This controversy highlights growing concerns over U.S. immigration policies under the Trump administration and their implications for families, particularly those involving vulnerable children. As the debate continues, many advocates are calling for a reassessment of how such deportations are handled, stressing the necessity for due process and protection of children's rights, according to Forbes, Salon, and HuffPost.