The Trump administration policy separating children from their parents when they cross the Mexican border is eroding the "fine line between civility and brutality," former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said Wednesday.
"I'm alluding to many countries that I have spent time in oversees over the years, that I would observe there is a pretty fine line between civility and brutality, I think much thinner than people might think based on what I have observed in other countries," Clapper told CNN's "New Day." "So I think it is very disturbing to our friends and allies and to our adversaries."
The news is also "not good in any measure" when it comes to the United States' international image, Clapper told CNN.
"The United States is known as a beacon of freedom and justice and a haven for the downtrodden and weak," said Clapper. "This is not consistent with, it doesn't comport with our values and our standards. So it is very disturbing to people overseas."
Clapper said he also does not believe that the image of "the children being ripped away from their parents" is congruent with the "real threat" faced at the border, "which are terrorists, druggies, etcetera. So I don't see how this particular program gets to enhance security."
He added that he does understand the need for border security, "no question about it, but there has got to be a better way than this."
The White House has maintained parents are breaking the law while crossing the Mexican border, noted show co-host John Berman, and that the children, "if not cared for by their parents, end up in MS-13."
"I suspect that, you know, not very many cases of that," said Clapper. "If this is the rationale for it, it is overkill by a long stretch."