U.S. Sen Mazie Hirono choked up and shed a tear over a toddler and her father who died trying to cross the border illegally because he was tired of waiting to be processed on the Mexico side, admonishing that anybody who does not feel the same “is dead or dying in [our] hearts,” and serves as an indication of “the heart of America” (“Hirono grows emotional over kids at the border,” Star-Advertiser, July 12).

She did this while advocating for the Stop Cruelty to Migrant Children Act, apparently oblivious that it is exactly this type of legislation, and these displays of unbridled sympathy by our legislators, that encourages more and more families to throw themselves into the path of danger by making the trip north, assured that if they can just get to the border and put up with a little discomfort, they too will gain unfettered access to all that America has to offer.

If she wants to place blame accurately for these types of horrific events, she needs look no further than her mirror.

Jim Wolery

Kaneohe

Click here to read more Letters to the Editor.