The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced on Monday (July 15th) that due to President Biden’s asylum restrictions taking effect, the number of arrests at the U.S.-Mexico border in June decreased by approximately 29%, reaching the lowest level during Biden’s presidency.
In June, around 83,536 individuals were arrested at the border, down from approximately 117,901 in May, marking the lowest level since January 2021.
CBP Acting Commissioner Troy Miller stated that since Biden announced on June 4th that asylum applications would be halted when daily arrests reached 2,500 individuals, by the end of June, the seven-day average of daily arrests had declined by over half to around 1,900 people per day.
Miller stated, “Recent border security measures have had a meaningful impact on our ability to deal with illegal border crossers.”
U.S. officials noted that the number of arrests has decreased by over half from its peak of 250,000 people in December, largely attributed to the enforcement efforts by Mexican authorities.
Data indicates a significant decrease in the number of arrivals from different nationalities, including Mexicans most affected by the asylum suspension, as well as Chinese individuals who typically fly to Ecuador and then travel overland to the U.S. border.
San Diego was the busiest of the nine regions where the Border Patrol operates along the Mexico border in terms of arrest numbers, followed by Tucson in Arizona.
In June, over 41,000 individuals entered legally through the online reservation application called CBP One. Since the launch of the app in January 2023, 680,500 successful reservations have been made.
Under Biden’s border order, most migrants encountered at ports of entry will not undergo asylum application reviews. Instead, they may be swiftly expelled to Mexico, accelerating repatriation procedures to their home countries, and facing criminal and administrative consequences.
CBP also announced on Monday that since the order was issued, over 70,000 individuals have been repatriated to more than 170 countries. CBP added that this year’s total repatriation numbers are the highest since 2010.
This data could be seen as a positive development for Biden as border issues have become a focal point in the 2024 presidential election.
White House spokesperson Andrew Bates stated in a release, “President Biden will continue to lead, including taking action to ensure the security of our borders, and call on Republican members of Congress to do their part by passing bipartisan border security legislation.”
The influx of cross-border illegal immigrants has raised serious national security concerns.
Last month, several U.S. officials revealed that over 400 illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. exploited a smuggling network associated with the terrorist organization ISIS, with more than 50 individuals unaccounted for. National security officials fear these individuals may launch attacks on U.S. soil.
The U.S. Homeland Security Council (HSC) also disclosed that among the large numbers of illegal Chinese immigrants flooding into the U.S. border, there may be infiltrations by Chinese spies and military personnel.
According to CBP statistics, in the 2023 fiscal year, over 24,000 Chinese immigrants illegally crossed the U.S. border, a significant increase from the 342 Chinese individuals in the 2021 fiscal year, making Chinese immigrants the fastest-growing group of illegal border crossers.
In the U.S., concerns are rising about possible infiltration of Chinese spies amidst the surge of refugees at the border.