The southern border saw one of its least chaotic months under President Biden in April as migrants flock to take advantage of the administration’s invitation for would-be illegal immigrants to come through “parole” programs.
The Border Patrol nabbed 128,884 illegal immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico boundary, the third-lowest month since just after Mr. Biden took office in 2021.
But officers at airports and seaports recorded 116,771 unauthorized entries, many of those migrants Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has promised to catch-and-release under parole powers.
Customs and Border Protection said the numbers show the administration’s plans, coupled with stepped up enforcement by Mexico and other hemispheric partners, is finally biting into the migrant crisis and defying the usual seasonal pattern of an increase in illegal crossings in the spring.
“As a result of this increased enforcement, southwest border encounters have not increased, bucking previous trends,” said Troy Miller, CBP’s acting commissioner.
House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green said the numbers show the border is still “catastrophic,” even if it’s not longer an “absolute catastrophe.”
“These numbers make one thing clear — we are still in a crisis of the Biden administration’s making,” the Tennessee Republican said.
The shift to parole is an intentional strategy of the Biden administration, which says it is safer for the migrants than being smuggled across and apprehended by the Border Patrol.
They can either schedule an arrival at the border crossings from Mexico or, in the case of some favored nations such as Venezuela, citizens can fly directly into airports in the U.S. interior.
The result is still tens of thousands of migrants settling in the U.S. despite lacking a legal visa.
CBP said it brought in 41,400 people through parole at the southern border in April and nearly 31,000 people flew into U.S. airports.
All told, CBP said it recorded 247,837 unauthorized entries at the borders and airports and seaports in April. That’s down from 276,036 encounters recorded in April 2023.
The Border Patrol reported arresting five more people at the southern border whose identities matched with the terrorism watchlist. That’s tied for the lowest known monthly rate for the Biden administration, which began releasing the terrorism data two years ago.