Border Crossing Numbers Plunge By 40% After Biden Adopts New Asylum Policy

Following President Joe Biden’s announcement of new restrictions on asylum earlier this month, the number of migrants illegally coming through the U.S.-Mexico border has dropped 40%.

The new restrictions on asylum began in early June, resulting in the closing of the border to thousands of migrants who sought asylum in the United States. The Departments of Homeland Security and Justice also established a rule that granted the Biden administration permission to remove some migrants from the U.S. in hours or days.

The border is experiencing its lowest levels of crossings since January 2021, right before Biden took office, with the daily crossings dipping below 2,400. Though this drop in crossings is apparent, it still is not enough for the restrictions to be lifted. For that to occur, border crossings must remain below 1,500 for seven consecutive days.

The fall in illegal immigration numbers has happened at an opportune time. The White House has used the statistics to promote the president’s new policy and condemn former President Donald Trump for his lack of support for legislative efforts tackling clear border policy issues. These announcements also came out before the presidential debate.

Recent polls have shown that most people believe that the GOP will do a better job than Biden at managing border security and illegal immigration. In response, the Biden administration has emphasized the president’s actions to address the issue.

Following the changes, the Department of Homeland Security has reported that it has supervised flights that returned over 24,000 individuals to their respective countries and that it has also doubled the number of migrants removed from Border Patrol’s custody.