Biden administration officials in Washington waited until 8:25 p.m. on Wednesday to release a record-setting migrant apprehension report which reveals that Border Patrol agents along the southwest border apprehended more than 222,000 in May — the largest single-month total dating back to the Clinton administration. The timing breaks with prior practice of disclosing border figures during business hours and, frequently, press conference calls about new data.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials waited until late Wednesday evening to release the May Southwest Border Migration Report that confirms a Breitbart Texas report from earlier this month showing the apprehension of 222,656 migrants who illegally crossed the border from Mexico. The report shows the apprehension of the largest number of migrants in any single month dating back to January 2000.
Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection
CBP officials attempted to blame the record-setting report on the expulsion and re-entry of migrants related to the continuation of Title 42.
“The large number of expulsions during the pandemic has contributed to a higher-than-usual number of migrants making multiple border crossing attempts, which means that total encounters somewhat overstate the number of unique individuals arriving at the border,” CBP officials stated in the letter releasing the report.
However, Border Patrol agents only expelled 42 percent of the migrants apprehended along the southwest border. Those Title 42 expulsions included 90,650 single adults and 9,850 family units.
The report then goes on to show that the number of “unique individuals” jumped 15 percent over the previous month — 177,793 migrants. The report also shows an increase of 21 percent in the number of unaccompanied migrant children in May and an eight percent increase in the number of family units apprehended.
“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,” CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus said in the written statement. “As temperatures start to rise in the summer, human smugglers will continue to exploit vulnerable populations and recklessly endanger the lives of migrants for financial gain.”
This is the third consecutive month where Border Patrol agents apprehended more than 200,000 migrants. Between March 1 and May 31, agents apprehended a total of 636,972 migrants. This total does not include migrants got away without being apprehended.
Since the beginning of Fiscal Year 22, which began on October 1, 2021, Border Patrol agents apprehended 1,536,899 migrants. With four months remaining, the total apprehensions are just shy of the FY21 total of 1,734,686 migrants. That total will likely be exceeded in the June report.
“The terrain along the Southwest Border is extreme, the summer heat is severe, and the miles of desert that migrants must hike after crossing the border are unforgiving,” Commissioner Magnus concluded. “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.”
However, CBP officials are bracing for yet another increase in migrant apprehensions. CBP officials warned:
In response to the increase in migration being experienced by nations across the Hemisphere, DHS is executing a comprehensive, whole-of-government plan to manage increases in the number of migrants encountered at our border, as outlined by Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas in an April 26 memo.
That includes surging resources, increasing efficiencies, administering consequences, bolstering capacity of non-governmental organizations, targeting and disrupting transnational criminal organizations and smugglers, and deterring irregular migration in partnership with other agencies across the federal government and with nations throughout the hemisphere.
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