There were over a quarter of a million migrant encounters at the southern border in May, and they hit a new record.
According to the Customs and Border Protection (CBP), there were 239,416 encounters in just one month. Officials had already warned that the unprecedented numbers were going to rise through the summer months.
If you go back to May of 2021, there were 180,597 encounters, and in May of 2020, there were only 23,237. The May 2022 number was higher than a month before which was 235,478. That number broke the previous record, so, just as the CBP warned, the numbers are rising.
These massive numbers are coming at the same time that the Biden administration is looking to end expulsions under the Title 42 health order. This was implemented under former President Donald Trump during the COVID-19 pandemic. It dictates that migrants be sent back across the border until their asylum requests have been granted.
Fortunately, a federal judge blocked the Biden administration from stopping the order, so expulsions continued during May.
Those who were expelled at the border totaled 42% of encounters. There were 55% of single adults expelled, but only 17% of families encountered were expelled.
Chris Magnus, the CBP Commissioner, said regarding these percentages, “Current restrictions at the U.S. border have not changed: single adults and families encountered at the Southwest Border will continue to be expelled, where appropriate, under Title 42.”
Magnus went on to describe the danger for vulnerable migrants in the hands of human smugglers out for financial gain. He talked about the heat in the desert and the miles that have to be hiked to get across the border.
“Our message to those who would try and gain illegal entry to the United States remains the same – don’t make the dangerous journey only to be sent back,” Magnus said.
Border Patrol agents have been overwhelmed since Biden took office and morale is said to be at an all-time low.
On high-level official at the CBP told Fox News that there have been 440,000 known “gotaways” since the beginning of this fiscal year in October. There were 50,000 just in May. “Gotaway” is an official term, by the way. It means that migrants were not captured…they got away.
Since October of 2020, there have been 800,000 gotaways.
Alejandro Mayorkas urged migrants not to make the treacherous journey and confessed that border agents were seeing “historic” numbers.
He said that the numbers could rise even more due to confusion over court orders and misinformation being given by smugglers.
Despite all this, the Biden administration is still trying to end Title 42. Most people at the border believe that this will lead to a greater surge in the number of migrants coming to the border.
The Biden administration is saying there would be a short surge, but the numbers would soon decrease because of criminal penalties for illegal entry.
The White House continues to harp on its “root cause” position. They say they want to get at the explanation of the crisis and solve the root causes like poverty, climate change, and violent corruption in Central America.
This effort has been led by Vice President Kamala Harris. She has bragged about the major investments she gained from the private sector after her “Call to Action.” And for the past year, she has talked about the “extreme progress” that has been made by her administration.
Just last week, President Biden announced a bunch of new promises from the United States related to visas, funding, and other issues related to migrants. He shared these at the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, the leaders of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador decided not to attend the conference. Whoops.
