Report: Record number of illegal border crossings in September
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The southern border reportedly experienced an all-time record high number of migrant crossings in September.
This surge not only strains resources at the border but creates a tough political situation for President Joe Biden, who has received criticism for his handling of the immigration crisis. The administration also faces a push from congressional Republicans — as well as some Democratic mayors — over border reform.
Southern border immigration by the numbers
According to data released by Customs and Border Protection, border patrol agents encountered more than 260,000 migrants in September — the highest recorded number this year. The numbers are also higher than last year’s record of 252,320 from December, according to the agency.
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After the Biden administration ended Title 42 — which imposed restrictions on border crossings amid the COVID-19 public health emergency — in May, the number of migrants coming to the U.S. dropped in June, as border officials told Fox News.
But border crossings quickly rose again. In July, the Customs and Border Protection reported 183,494 migrant encounters and in August, the number increased to 232,972.
For fiscal year 2023, more than 2.8 million migrant encounters have been recorded, which is slightly higher than 2.77 million last fiscal year — and Americans are concerned.
As BBC noted, tens of thousands of Venezuelans have been making their way to the U.S. each month, a trend that isn’t anticipated to stop since the South American country faces political as well as socioeconomic instability, leading to more than 6 million fleeing the country.
Previously, the Department of Homeland Security gave Venezuelans protection against deportation and work authorization until July. Now, these migrants can be removed from the country if they don’t have a legal basis to remain in the U.S.
Haitians, who similarly face economic hardship in their home country, have also faced deportation in recent months.
The Obama administration, which Biden served as a vice president for, set the record for the number of deportations, and President Barack Obama even earned the nickname “deporter-in-chief.” But Obama didn’t receive as much scrutiny at the time, compared to what Biden faces now.
Biden administration’s plans to build a wall
The Department of Homeland Security announced last week that the construction of a wall on the southern border will resume, while bypassing 26 federal regulations.
“There is presently an acute and immediate need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States in order to prevent unlawful entries into the United States in the project areas,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.
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Mayorkas took to X, formerly known as Twitter, saying the funding for the project was appropriated in 2019, during the Trump era, and the government is required to use these funds since Congress didn’t rescind the money.
He added that the current administration seeks a comprehensive approach to tackle the immigration crisis, which includes “state-of-the-art border surveillance technology and modernized ports of entry.”
The idea to build a wall was first proposed by former President Donald Trump, but during the 2020 presidential election Biden opposed the solution, saying, “There will not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration.”
Polling from September shows Americans, whether Democrats or Republicans, prefer Trump’s handling of immigration and border security issues over Biden’s by 24 points, 52% to 28%.
Can a wall on the southern border help the immigration crisis?
Although Trump said he is waiting for Biden’s apology, Biden maintains the same stance: When asked whether he believes a border wall will work, the president responded, “No.”
Adam Isacson, the director of defense oversight in the Washington Office on Latin America, expressed skepticism about building the wall.
“Anyplace sparsely populated and rural enough to have ocelots is a place where a wall that slows someone down for a couple of minutes isn’t going to make much difference,” he told The Hill.
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Meanwhile, Republicans like Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, are doubtful of Biden’s intentions.
“This is a crisis. It’s out of control, but I don’t believe for a minute that Joe Biden wants to fix it,” Cruz said in a television interview, referencing the immigration crisis.
“I think this is all window dressing to pretend he cares,” he added.
Republicans push for border security reform
Last month, Cruz introduced the Secure the Border Act — which sought to resume construction of the wall, tighten asylum regulations, criminalize visa overstays and fund more border patrol agents — as a part of the stopgap bill. But the border security measures were ultimately stripped from the legislation.
Now, congressional lawmakers have until Nov. 17 to pass spending bills that will keep the government funded and avoid a shutdown. Any delay will affect border patrol agents, who are at the forefront of the crisis and may not receive a paycheck if the government shuts down.
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., proposed a bill in late September that will ensure personnel at the border are paid in case of a shutdown.
“I have been to the southern border three times since President Biden took office, and the crisis is worse each time I visit,” Scott said in a press release last week. “Failed leadership created this crisis and we cannot allow the border to go unchecked, and our border patrol agents to go unpaid, due to a failure of Washington to fund government.”
