Arrests at the US-Mexico border fell nearly 30 percent in June to the lowest level during President Biden’s administration, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced Mondaywhen the president’s asylum restrictions went into effect.
About 83,000 people were arrested at the border in June, CBP said, down from about 118,000 in May and the lowest level since January 2021.
The move comes after Biden announced early last month that asylum processing would stop after 2,500 people were processed per day.
“Recent border security measures have had a significant impact on our ability to impose consequences on those who cross illegally,” CBP Acting Commissioner Troy Miller said in a statement.
The seven-day average of border crossing encounters has dropped more than 50 percent since the change in asylum policy on June 4, Miller added, to about 1,900 per day.
Under Biden’s border order, most migrants encountered between ports of entry are not screened for asylum claims and could be subject to rapid expulsion to Mexico, expedited deportation procedures to their home country, and criminal and administrative consequences.
CBP also announced Monday that it has removed and returned more than 70,000 individuals to more than 170 countries since the order was announced. The total number of removals and returns this year is the highest of any year since 2010, the agency added.
The data could be a boon for Biden as border crossings have taken center stage in the 2024 presidential election. The White House criticized Republicans late last month for failing to recognize the declining trend in crossings.
“Meanwhile, Republican officials have twice blocked the toughest bipartisan border security agreement in modern American history, supporting fentanyl traffickers, human smugglers and — in their own words — Donald Trump, over the Border Patrol Union, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and border mayors from both parties who endorsed the bipartisan agreement,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement.
He added: “President Biden will continue to lead, including taking action to secure our border and calling on congressional Republicans to do their work and pass the bipartisan border security bill.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
