SAN DIEGO, California — President Joe Biden’s top Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials intervened at the last minute to stop a group of Republican lawmakers from viewing the United States-Mexico border in the evening, when border crossers use holes in the unfinished border wall to cross illegally into the U.S.

A delegation of Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee, including Reps. Darrell Issa (CA), Tom McClintock (CA), Scott Fitzgerald (WI), Cliff Bentz (OR), and Victoria Spartz (IN), were set for a trip to view the southern border in the evening last week when Biden’s DHS officials stepped in to block the visit.

“The Biden White House canceled our night trip to the border because they didn’t want my Republican colleagues to see the flood of migrants, drugs, and trafficked children that pass through the gaps in the border wall that this administration refuses to close,” Issa told Breitbart News in an exclusive statement.

The night visit was crucial for the Republican delegation because much of the illegal immigration on the California-Mexico border occurs in the evening. Large holes in the unfinished border wall, captured in exclusive footage by Breitbart News, show ideal paths for border crossers to cross illegally into the U.S., specifically in the evening hours.

“They’re trying to control the narrative,” a source told Breitbart News.

A hole in the border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego, California can be seen, creating an ideal path for border crossers and illegal aliens. (Photo by Breitbart News)

The following day, when the Republican delegation toured the border with DHS officials, the agency made a note to clear detention space beforehand.

For instance, at the DHS’s Imperial Beach station, only about 80 to 85 border crossers were in detention when the delegation arrived. The evening before, the station had more than 200 border crossers in detention.

“They literally cleared out before the congressmen arrived,” a source told Breitbart News.

On their tour, the Republican delegation was taken to quiet locations across the San Diego, California, sectors where border crossings were not taking place and where no apprehensions were occurring.

As Breitbart News has reported, more than 221,000 border crossers were apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border last month. About 80,116 were released into the U.S. interior via parole or other means. Put another way, for every 11 border crossers apprehended, about four are released into American communities.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.