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The Border Patrol made 21,593 arrests during the month, down
from 47,316 in December and the lowest mark since May 2020 near
the peak of the COVID-19 epidemic, according to U.S. Customs and
Border Protection.
“Call it the Trump Effect,” the White House said in a statement.
Border arrests fell sharply well before Trump took office from
an all-time high of 250,000 in December 2023. Mexican
authorities increased enforcement within their own borders and
then-President Joe Biden introduced severe asylum restrictions
in June.
Arrests sank even further after Trump was sworn in on Jan. 20
and issued a slew of orders on immigration, including one to
suspend asylum on grounds that the United States is under
“invasion” at the southern border.
Border czar Tom Homan said Monday that there were 229 border
arrests in a 24-hour period, the lowest he remembered since
becoming a Border Patrol agent in 1984. Homeland Security
Department officials say they want to drive that to zero.
Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks said Friday in Edinburg,
Texas, that he will "not be satisfied that our border is secure
until we have operational control of our border, which means
anyone that crosses illegally is apprehended or no one crosses.”
Homeland Security said Tuesday that it launched a
multimillion-dollar video ad campaign in the U.S. and
internationally that features Secretary Kristi Noem warning
people to leave or not to come. “If you are here illegally, we
will find you and deport you. You will never return," she said
in the video.
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