Washington (CNN) Corey Lewandowski refused to apologize Wednesday after he dismissed the story of a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome who was reportedly separated from her mother after crossing the border illegally.
While appearing Tuesday on Fox News, former senior Democratic National Committee adviser Zac Petkanas shared an anecdote he had read about "a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome" who had been "taken from her mother and put in a cage."
"Womp womp," the former Trump campaign manager responded.
.@Zac_Petkanas says on Fox News a 10-year-old girl with Down Syndrome was separated from her mother at the border.
Corey Lewandowski responds: "Womp womp." pic.twitter.com/cZMXWmwbjw — Jon Passantino (@passantino) June 19, 2018
Lewandowski refused to apologize for the remark when asked about it on Fox News Wednesday morning.
"An apology? I owe an apology to the children whose parents are putting them in a position that is forcing them to be separated. We owe an apology to Jamiel Shaw and Brian Terry and Kate Steinle's family who have allowed those individuals to be killed by illegal aliens," Lewandowski said. "The American people owe an apology to those people. When you cross the border illegally, you have committed a crime and there is accountability for committing crimes and there should be."
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Corey Lewandowski has sparked outrage after he mocked a story regarding a 10-year-old disabled illegal immigrant girl who was separated from her mom at the border.
His comments come just a day after Fox News host Laura Inragham called the children detention centers 'essentially summer camps'.
Donald Trump's former campaign chief rolled his eyes and said 'Womp, womp' when Democratic strategist Zac Petkanas shared the horrific story on Tuesday.
'I read today about a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome who was taken from her mother and put in a cage…' Petkanas began.
But before he could finish, Lewandowski merely replied: 'Womp, womp'.
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It has been a second night of controversy for Fox News after Corey Lewandowski mocked a story regarding a 10-year-old disabled girl being separated from her mom while on-air
Donald Trump's former campaign chief rolled his eyes and said 'Womp, womp' when Democratic strategist Zac Petkanas shared the horrific story on Tuesday
'Did you just say "Womp, womp" to a 10-year-old girl with down syndrome being separated from her mother?; Petkanas asked, clearly disgusted.
'How dare you, how absolutely dare you sir, how dare you...'
Lewandowski tried to talk over Petkanas, saying: 'What I said is you can pick anything you want, the bottom line is clear.'
The clip was quickly shared on Twitter by multiple outlets, and many high-profile figures didn't hold back to share their anger with the Fox News commentator.
Dem strategist Zac Petkanas: “I read today about a 10-year-old girl with Down Syndrome who was taken from her mother and put in a cage…”
Trump’s former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski: (Rolls eyes) “Womp womp.” pic.twitter.com/tWxFGTjJEX — Axios (@axios) June 20, 2018
'Did you just say "Womp, womp" to a 10-year-old girl with down syndrome being separated from her mother?; Petkanas asked, clearly disgusted
'There is no low to which this coward Corey Lewandowski won't sink,' Megyn Kelly tweeted.
'This man should not be afforded a national platform to spew his hate.'
Meghan McCain called the clip 'so horrible, even by Lewandowski standards'.
Columnist John Podhoretz wrote: 'Womp womp will be the sound Corey Lewandowski's soul makes as it descends to Hell.'
'I hope there is a hell just for Corey Lewandowski,' added Julia Wick.
Actress Mary McCormack also chimed in, asking: 'What have we become?'
'Corey Lewandowski MOCKED a ten yr. old with Down Syndrome who was taken from her mother,' she wrote.
The clip was quickly shared on Twitter by multiple outlets, and many high-profile figures didn't hold back to share their anger - including former Fox News host Megyn Kelly
John McCain's daughter Meghan also chimed in, saying the clip was 'so horrible, even by Lewandowski standards'
Actress Anna Kendrick was among one of the big names that publicly hit out at Lewandowski
Thousands of people took to the streets across America on Tuesday, including outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in San Francisco, to protest family separations
Demonstrators in New York call for an end the family separations at the US-Mexico border
Americans, church figures and politicians from both sides of the aisle had lined up to criticize Trump for his border security policies
The Trump administration has been accused of using children as political pawns in its attempts to negotiate on border security
'Talk about a special place in hell. Where is the @gop? Retweet this until they're forced to look at themselves.'
'Corey Lewandowski is simply doing as our president does: making fun of those who can't defend themselves,' added Nick Campanella.
'This is the result of "It was just a joke." And I'm sure this is too. And I'm sure Republicans will defend this. And I'm sure nothing will happen.'
Ingraham was also criticized this week after she called immigration detention centers for children 'essentially summer camps'.
The Fox News host was discussing Donald Trump's policy to separate immigrant children from their parents when she made the controversial comment on Monday.
'As more illegal immigrants are rushing the border, more kids are being separated from their parents,' she said on The Ingraham Angle.
'And temporarily housed at what are, essentially, summer camps.'
Ingraham's words horrified many after pictures were released showing immigrant children lined up in a series of cages created by metal fencing at detention centers.
The host then tried to backtrack on those statements towards the end of the show, responding to the backlash on social media in real time.
Twitter quickly filled with outrage as many expressed their disgust at Lewnadowski
'Apparently there are a lot of people very upset because we referred to some of the detention facilities tonight as essentially like summer camps,' said Ingraham.
'The San Diego Union Tribune today described the facilities as essentially like what you would expect at a boarding school. So I will stick to there are some of them like boarding schools.'
Fox News has since released a separate statement regarding the controversy, saying Ingraham's 'very personal, on-the-ground commitment to the plight of impoverished and abandoned children speaks for itself'.
'So too does her strong belief in a commonsense, legal immigration system, which will continue to be a focus of her show,' she added.
Laura Ingraham has come under fire after calling immigration detention centers for children 'essentially summer camps'
The inside of a dormitory at the Tornillo facility, a shelter for children of detained migrants, is seen in this photo provided by the US Department of Health and Human Services, in Texas
A Mission Police Deptartment officer, and a US Border Patrol agent watch over a group of Central American asylum seekers before taking them into custody in McAllen, Texas
'FOX News will never tolerate or give in to attempts to silence diverse viewpoints by agenda-driven intimidation efforts.'
Many on Twitter expressed outrage at Ingraham's claims, including Parkland survivor Dave Hogg - a frequent critic of the Fox News host.
'Laura Ingraham, like Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity, would happily defend genocide if the Trump administration asked them to do so,' he wrote.
Author Anthony Breznican joked: 'Laura Ingraham isn't going to hell. She's going to an 'intense sauna''.
Many commenters expressed confusion at Ingraham's vision for summer camps.
Many on Twitter expressed outrage at Ingraham's claims, including Parkland survivor Dave Hogg - a frequent critic of the Fox News host
'Ah yes, who else remembers singing kum ba yah, roasting marshmallows, cage living, and a friendly game of let's never see your mommy and daddy again,' wrote Danny Deraney.
Another joked about what a summer camp would look like if it was run by Ingraham.
'Your child will learn how to properly fold a foil emergency blanket and how to decorate the inside of a cage,' JD Durkin quipped.
'Sign up now for a special lesson in basketball dribbling and mocking school shooting survivors. Act fast,' he added, quoting Ingraham's recent controversies with Hogg and NBA star Lebron James.
Others called on the public to boycott Ingraham, while some challenged the Fox News host to send her own children to the detention centers.
The audio was released just a day after it was revealed border agents have been telling illegal immigrant parents that they are taking their children 'for a bath' before separating them
Anne Chandler, the director of the Houston office of Tahirih Justice Center said she's spoken with several parents who said they were told their children were going to get a bath before they were separated
A two-year-old Honduran cries as her mother is searched and detained near the US-Mexico border on June 12. She had illegally crossed the Rio Grande on a raft to reach Texas
In May, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a 'zero tolerance' policy in which all those apprehended entering the US illegally, including those seeking asylum, would be criminally charged, which generally leads to children being separated from their parents.
On Friday, it was revealed that nearly 2,000 children were separated from adults at the border between mid-April and the end of May.
Those children are now living in detention centers along the US-Mexico border.
Trump's policy has drawn condemnation from medical professionals, religious leaders, and immigration activists, who warn that some children could suffer lasting psychological trauma.
It has since been revealed that Trump administration officials are sending babies and other young children forcibly separated from their parents to at least three 'tender age' shelters in South Texas.
Lawyers and medical providers who have visited the Rio Grande Valley shelters described play rooms of crying preschool-age children in crisis.
The government also plans to open a fourth shelter to house hundreds of young migrant children in Houston, where city leaders denounced the move Tuesday.
Meanwhile, NBC has reported that a new desert tent city is reportedly preparing for more than 4,000 children and plans to house 20 to a tent.
Corey Lewandowski, President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, on Tuesday night appeared to mock an anecdote about a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome who was reportedly separated from her family at the US-Mexico border.
The exchange happened during a discussion on Fox News about the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” border policy.
In recent days, the administration has faced growing bipartisan criticism over the policy, in which all adult migrants are being referred for criminal prosecution when they cross the US border illegally, which leads children to be separated from the adults they’re traveling with.
The Trump administration’s enforcement of its new “zero tolerance” immigration policy sparked a shouting match during a Fox News segment on Tuesday.
“Look, I read today about a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome who was taken from her mother and put in a cage,” Zac Petkanas, a former Hillary Clinton campaign aide, said.
“Womp womp,” Corey Lewandowski, President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, said mockingly.
“Did you just say ‘womp womp’ to a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome being taken from her mother?” Petkanas said.
The conversation quickly went off the rails as the two tumbled into a shouting match.
“What I said is that you can pick anything you want, but the bottom line is very clear,” Lewandowski said. “When you cross the border illegally, you have given up the right–“
“How dare you, how absolutely dare you, sir?” Petkanas said.
Petkanas seemed to be referring to a Wall Street Journal report that mentioned a girl who was separated from her mother and her brother as they attempted to cross the US-Mexico border. The girl and her mother were sent to different detention facilities, according to the report.
The Trump administration has recently faced growing bipartisan criticism over its new policy that automatically refers adult migrants who have entered the US illegally for criminal prosecution. The move invariably leads to children being separated from the adults they’re traveling with.
Watch the clip here:
Photo: Jeff Swensen (Getty)
During a heated televised debate Tuesday evening, a T-Mobile adviser and disgraced former Trump campaign employee derided a 10-year-old child with Down Syndrome while defending the Trump administration’s policy of separating immigrant children from their parents at the U.S.–Mexico border.
The T-Mobile adviser, Corey Lewandowski, appeared on Fox News to show support for the “zero-tolerance” policy announced in April, which has so far resulted in the U.S. government seizing more 2,300 children from their parents, many of whom are said to have entered the country seeking asylum.
“I read today about a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome who was taken from her mother and put in a cage...” Democratic strategist Zac Petkanas said on Fox News.
Petkanas was then interrupted by Lewandowski, who replied,“Womp, womp,” a game-show noise that means failure, loss, or loser.
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BuzzFeed reports that a 10-year-old girl was detained and separated from her mother by U.S. immigration officials last week and placed in a detention facility in McAllen, Texas, despite her father being a legal U.S. resident.
According to Politico, T-Mobile last month hired the lobbying firm Turnberry Solutions, which reportedly employs Lewandowski, to help the wireless provider win approval for its proposed merger with Sprint. The Wall Street Journal confirmed Lewandowski’s work with T-Mobile and reported that it reviewed documents that show he “receives a cut of the fees paid to the lobbying firm on the T-Mobile contract.” Prior to his work with Turnberry, Lewandowski, President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, was accused of sexual assault by singer Joy Villa.
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“Corey Lewandowski is now affiliated with that firm and they have offered perspective to T-Mobile on a variety of topics, including the pending transaction,” T-Mobile said in a statement provided to the media.
Early last month, Lewandowski joined Vice President Mike Pence’s political action committee, Great America PAC, which, incidentally, received $5,000 in April from the GEO Group, a company that reportedly operates a 1,500-bed ICE detention facility in Aurora, Colorado.
T-Mobile did not yet respond to a request for comment. Lewandowski could not be reached.
