Illegal Border Crossings Today:

Border Apprehensions Rise for Fourth Consecutive Month

Illegal Immigration

Legislative Update By: RJ Hauman

While Congress continues to stall funding President Trump’s border wall, the apprehension of illegal aliens crossing the southwest border increased for the fourth consecutive month. In August, Border Patrol agents apprehended 22,293 illegal aliens who crossed the border from Mexico. (Breitbart, Sept. 11, 2017) This number is up from 18,190 in July and represents an increase of 22.56 percent, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data obtained by Breitbart. (Id.) In most years, the number of apprehensions declined in August or remained nearly flat due to the summer heat. (Id.) The exception to that came in 2016 in the run-up to the presidential election. (Id.)

Southwest border apprehensions dropped to 17-year lows in the months after President Trump took office in January, suggesting that his tough rhetoric on border security and immigration enforcement caused illegal border crossings to go down. (CNN, May 9, 2017) However, the steady increase in apprehensions, coupled with Congress’s refusal to fund the border wall shows that at some point, rhetoric is recognized as empty. Congress will have another opportunity to fund President Trump’s signature campaign promise in December, when the continuing resolution funding the government runs out.