Rachel Maddow breaks down over babies being sent to 'tender age' shelters

It's hard to rattle Rachel Maddow.

No matter how infuriating the news, she usually stays calm and collected. But news that the Trump administration is forcibly separating babies from their parents and sending them to "tender age" shelters was just too much.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Maddow attempted to read the update from the Associated Press on her MSNBC show on Tuesday night, but was overcome with emotion. Later, she apologized on Twitter for breaking down.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Here are the opening sentences of the story she was trying to read:

"Trump administration officials have been sending babies and other young children forcibly separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border 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."

There was, of course, no need to apologize. Maddow reacted like most human beings would to such a heartbreaking story -- with compassion. And her fans made sure she knew she had their support.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Many people contrasted it with former Donald Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski going on Fox News earlier the same day to mock a 10-year-old-girl with Down syndrome who was separated from her mother.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

The AP reports more than 2,300 children have been taken from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border since early May. The effort is part of Donald Trump's "zero-tolerance" policy meant to dissuade more immigrants from entering the country, many of whom are fleeing violence in Central American nations such as Guatemala and El Salvador.