Biden’s Migrant Crisis Just Keeps Getting Worse and Worse

AP Photo/Gregory Bull

How horrible will the migrant crisis have to get before the Biden administration starts taking it seriously? A recent report indicates that the data on migrant encounters at the border in July might be even worse than in June and so far, neither President Joe Biden nor his alleged border czar, Vice President Kamala Harris, seem to have any real solutions.

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The Associated Press reported that the number of unaccompanied minors showing up at the southern border “likely hit an all-time high in July” and the number of families possibly “reached its second-highest total on record,” according to a U.S. official. These preliminary numbers are quite alarming given that attempts to cross the border typically decrease around this time of the year due to the excessive heat, which can often prove fatal to migrants seeking to gain entry into the United States.

David Shahoulian, assistant secretary of border and immigration policy at the Department of Homeland Security told the AP that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) probably rounded up about 19,000 unaccompanied children last month. This exceeds the prior high of 18,877 that was apprehended in March. In June, the number was 15,253. The official also stated that the number of migrants encountered in July is projected to be about 80,000, which is up from June.

But the situation gets even more severe. The AP reported:

Overall, U.S. authorities stopped migrants about 210,000 times at the border in July, up from 188,829 in June and the highest in more than 20 years. But the numbers aren’t directly comparable because many cross repeatedly under a pandemic-related ban that expels people from the country immediately without giving them a chance to seek asylum but carries no legal consequences.

Shahoulian stated that agents detained migrants about 78,000 times in the Rio Grande Valley. In June, the number of encounters was 59,380 in June and 51,149 in May. The pandemic-related ban on asylum seekers was renewed by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and has remained in place amid criticism from immigration advocacy groups.

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Still, the official stated that the number of encounters is expected to reach an all-time high for the 2021 fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30. The rapid increase is placing even more pressure on an already stretched thin CBP. The AP noted:

The Border Patrol had 17,778 people in custody on Sunday, despite a “COVID-19 adjusted capacity” of 4,706. The Rio Grande Valley sector was holding 10,002 of them.

Even with the risk of being turned away at the border, migrant families and unaccompanied minors are still making the journey. If they are willing to brave the harsh weather to try to get into the country, imagine how many more will do the same under cooler temperatures. At this point, this crisis does not appear to have an end.

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