Biden's Election-Year Border Enforcement Gambit Yields Lowest Migrant Apprehensions Since Trump's Departure

A recent gambit by the Biden administration to give the appearance of border enforcement yielded the lowest month of migrant apprehensions of his term. Border Patrol agents apprehended just over 82,000 migrants who illegally crossed the border between ports of entry in June.

In January 2021, President Joe Biden signed executive orders eliminating or rescinding the successful policies of the Trump administration, Breitbart News reported at that time. During that month, Border Patrol agents apprehended just over 78,000 migrants who illegally crossed the southwest border between ports of entry. That was the last time that CBP apprehension reports showed a five-digit number — until June 2024. In February 2021, agents apprehended more than 101,000 migrants, Breitbart Texas reported.

Agents along the southwest border with Mexico apprehended slightly more than 82,000 migrants in June — approximately 2,645 per day — according to an unofficial Border Patrol report obtained and reviewed by Breitbart Texas. On June 4, President Biden signed an executive order to limit migrant encounters to 2,500 per day, a feat his administration has yet to accomplish. Apprehensions in the San Diego, Tucson, and El Paso Sectors each apprehended more than 10,000 migrants in June. San Diego led with the arrest of more than 26,000 migrants. This was followed by more than 22,000 in the Tucson Sector and more than 14,500 in the El Paso Sector.

This was the latest effort by the Biden administration to give the appearance of enforcing the nation’s border security and immigration laws in the months leading up to the presidential election in November. In January 2024, migrant apprehensions fell by 50 percent from the record-shattering report of nearly 250,000 migrant apprehensions in December 2023. Agents apprehended approximately 124,000 migrants in January. The drop followed a secret deal between the Biden administration and the Mexican government to increase immigration enforcement activities in Mexico.

Breitbart Texas reached out to members of Congress and the office of House Speaker Mike Johnson for information about the agreement between Mexico and the United States to reduce migrant crossings. One congressman replied that it was unclear if the Biden administration would ever disclose an agreement of this nature. There do not appear to be any reports disclosing what the U.S. may have agreed to in return for Mexico’s increased enforcement efforts.

An official operating under the umbrella of U.S. Customs and Border Protection told Breitbart Texas that the efforts by Mexico are not a long-term fix to the problem. “The migrants are just being delayed from reaching the U.S. border,” the source stated. “The migrants are being moved further south, delaying their efforts to reach their goal of seeking asylum in the U.S.”

Shortly after the meeting between Mexico and Biden administration officials, an undisclosed agreement between Mexico and the United States, Mexican immigration and law enforcement officials began actions to round up migrants along the country’s northern border and transporting them back to Mexico, Breitbart’s Cartel Chronicles reported.

An official operating under the umbrella of U.S. Customs and Border Protection told Breitbart Texas that the efforts by Mexico are not a long-term fix to the problem. “The migrants are just being delayed from reaching the U.S. border,” the source stated. “The migrants are being moved further south, delaying their efforts to reach their goal of seeking asylum in the U.S.”

The apprehension numbers do not include more than 1.1 million migrants who the Biden administration has granted immigration parole under a program never authorized or funded by Congress, Breitbart News reported in June. The parole pipeline brings foreign nationals to the U.S. through the administration’s “CBP One” mobile app and “humanitarian parole,” Breitbart’s John Binder wrote.

The apprehension numbers also do not include more than 194,000 known got-aways so far this year, Breitbart Texas reported.

Migrant “got-aways” are an estimate of migrants that are observed crossing the border and are not apprehended. Border Patrol agents being out in the field to make these observations detect a good number of these. Some others are observed crossing by camera operators or other detection equipment but no agents are available to make the apprehension. Still others are part of larger groups where only a certain number of the group were apprehended.