Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen vehemently defended her agency’s actions at the southern border on Wednesday while fending off criticism from Democrats who accused her of misleading lawmakers about the facilities used to house underage migrants. “What is a chain-link fence enclosed into a chamber on a concrete floor represent to you? Is that a cage?” Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) asked Nielsen at one point during a hearing for the House Homeland Security Committee. “It is a detention space, ma’am, that you know has existed for decades,” the secretary replied. “Does it differ from the cages you put your dogs in when you let them stay outside? Is it different?” Watson Coleman asked. “Yes,” Nielsen said. “It’s larger, it has facilities, it provides room to sit, to stand, to lay down.” Watson Coleman fired back: “So did my dog’s cage.”

.@RepBonnie: What is a chainlink fence enclosed into a chamber on a concrete floor? A cage?@SecNielsen: It's a detention space, mam



REP BONNIE: Is it different from what you put dogs in?



NIELSEN: Yes



REP BONNIE: In what sense?



NIELSEN: It's larger



B: Sounds like a dog cage pic.twitter.com/hcIEv4zwrE — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 6, 2019

Nielsen’s appearance on Wednesday was the first before the House Homeland Security panel since Democrats took control of the chamber in January. During her appearance, she said that in her estimation, undocumented immigration was “simply spiraling out of control,” but said once again her agency had no official policy when it came to separating parents from their children at the border. The notion of cages came up several times throughout the day, referencing detention centers that housed underage migrant children separated from their families last year at the beginning of the White House’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy. Photos from inside the Customs and Border Protection centers caused an uproar at the time. “Sir, we don’t use cages for children,” Nielsen shot back at Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) when he used the word. The pair continued to debate about the phrasing before Thompson noted he’d seen the facilities himself. “I’ve seen the cages,” the lawmaker said. “I just want you to admit that the cages exist.” During another fiery exchange, Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.), asked several pointed questions related to the mental health of children separated at the border. “When you officially began family separation ... were you aware of researching showing it causes trauma that can do both immediate and long-term damage to children’s health,” Underwood, a registered nurse, asked. “The information that i was aware of at the time was that the trauma was part of the journey to come up to the border illegally,” Nielsen replied.

As a nurse, I’m concerned about the trauma young children and families are experiencing as a result of DHS separating families at the border. Tearing kids away from their parents is unacceptable, immoral, and just plain wrong. pic.twitter.com/J3OTEGKC5I — Lauren Underwood (@RepUnderwood) March 6, 2019