Enforcement encounters with migrants rose to a record high at the U.S. southern border last month, according to new data released Saturday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
CBP’s total number of encounters along the border in September was 269,735, including 218,763 arrests by Border Patrol at illegal crossings, and an additional 50,972 deportations at ports of entry.
The record monthly figure brought the total number of encounters with migrants for the recently ended fiscal year 2023 to 2.48 million, up from 2.38 million in 2022, and the highest of any year on record.
The surge of migrants attempting to enter the US underlines the scale of the humanitarian crisis at the border, and the political challenge it poses for President Joe Biden as he runs for re-election in 2024.
“In response to the high number of encounters across the southwest border in September, CBP has increased resources and personnel,” Troy A. Miller, acting CBP commissioner, said in a statement.
Enforcement encounters with migrants rose to a record high at the U.S. southern border last month. Pictured: Migrants crossing barbed wire on September 28 in Eagle Pass, Texas
CBP’s total number of encounters along the border in September was 269,735, bringing the total number of encounters for the recently ended fiscal year 2023 (black line) to 2.48 million
“CBP will remain vigilant, making operational adjustments as necessary and enforcing consequences under U.S. immigration law,” he added.
Miller called the scale of the migration “historic” and said CBP was working with domestic and foreign partners to address the problem and increase enforcement, including by “preparing for direct repatriations to Venezuela.”
The new data shows that Venezuelans are the largest nationality arrested last month for illegally crossing the US border, replacing Mexicans for the first time.
Venezuelans were arrested 54,833 times by Border Patrol after entering from Mexico in September, more than double the 22,090 arrests in August and well above the previous monthly high of 33,749 arrests in September 2022.
Arrests of all nationalities entering from Mexico totaled 218,763 in September, up 21 percent from 181,084 in August and approaching an all-time high of 222,018 in December 2022.
Venezuela has been in a political, economic and humanitarian crisis over the past decade, forcing more than seven million people to leave the country.
They initially settled in nearby countries in Latin America, but came to the United States in the past three years, settling in New York, Chicago and other major cities.
The surge of migrants trying to enter the US underlines the scale of the humanitarian crisis at the border, and the political challenge it poses for President Joe Biden
Immigrants wade through the Rio Grande as they enter the United States from Mexico in Eagle Pass, Texas on September 27, 2023
A U.S. Border Patrol agent detains a child from Venezuela as her parents pass through barbed wire at the U.S.-Mexico border in Eagle Pass, Texas, on September 27
The Biden administration recently announced temporary legal status for nearly 500,000 Venezuelans who were already in the United States as of July 31, while vowing to deport those who came illegally after that date and were not granted asylum.
The country recently began deportation flights to Venezuela as part of the diplomatic thaw with the government of longtime adversary Nicolás Maduro.
According to CBP, 130 Venezuelan citizens were removed on the first of these flights on Wednesday.
“We are in ongoing discussions with domestic and foreign partners to address historic hemispheric migration, including large migrant groups traveling on freight trains, and to enforce consequences, including by preparing for direct repatriations to Venezuela.” , Miller said.
Republicans seized on the latest figures as their leading presidential candidates have sought to make the border a key issue in next year’s elections.
“This fiscal year may be over, but the historic crisis at our southwest border, fueled by the policies of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, rages on,” said Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee.
The Biden administration has proposed about $14 billion for the border in a $106 billion spending package announced Friday, and has insisted that any long-term solution will require help from Congress.
The White House proposal includes $1.6 billion to hire 1,600 new asylum officers and processing staff, which could double the number of people working on asylum cases.
It also suggests $1.4 billion to add 375 immigration judges and their teams, in addition to money for 1,300 new Border Patrol agents.
There is $4.4 billion available for homeland security efforts, including increased funding for detention facilities, as the administration works to quickly deport those who do not qualify for asylum.
“The additional funding request announced yesterday would provide much-needed additional resources, including additional CBP agents and officials to support our essential missions: from border and migration management to countering fentanyl and keeping dangerous drugs out of our communities,” Miller said .