U.S. border control is facing increasing challenges under the Biden government as the number of illegal immigrants crossing the border continues to surge. At the start of the 2024 fiscal year, crossings soared to 988,900 individuals between October and December. The record start to the year follows an already record 2.4 million illegal immigrant encounters at the southern border in fiscal year 2023. The number of encounters has drastically increased from approximately 1.7 million in 2021.
Data released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reveals a significant increase in the annualized rate of illegal immigrant arrests compared to numbers from February 2023 and 2022. The most recent reports disclose 5,616 arrests, exceeding 3,030 arrests and 2,424 arrests recorded in February 2023 and 2022, respectively.
Ira Mehlman, spokesperson for the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), argues that undocumented citizens face higher crime rates due to the absence of a rigorous vetting process. “All of these things result in people losing their lives because the government isn’t doing its job,” Mehlman told Newsweek in a recent interview, adding: “Sanctuary policies are compounding the danger of being presented. If they were properly implemented, Laken Riley would still be alive today.”
Republican lawmakers at the state and federal levels are pushing to allow local law enforcement to detain and arrest illegal immigrants when encountered. Additionally, some states, like Texas, are even attempting to enact their own deportation process for illegals caught in their jurisdiction.
The Supreme Court recently ruled 6-3 to temporarily allow Texas state officers to arrest, detain, and remove individuals presumed to be in the US illegally — pending a final judgment later this year. However, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals was allowed to issue a new order staying the Texas law.
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