U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials said border agents encountered more than 14,000 illegal immigrants at the southern border between Saturday and Friday.
The Tucson, Arizona, area led the charge, with more than 2,000 illegal immigrants arrested, FOX News’ Bill Melgin reported.
In addition to this, over 1,000 vacations took place on Saturday.
A group of migrants head to a van as hundreds of migrants gather along the border on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Lukeville, Arizona. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
The numbers follow a trend since President Biden took office in which the number of illegal border crossings decreased from January to February, rose again in March, and then spiked in the spring.
“If no action is taken, and if the past three years are any indication, please buckle up for the rest of this year,” Melgin tweeted. “Especially if Biden feels like immigrants need to come in before he can potentially be voted out of office.”
The numbers were released as the border becomes central to the 2024 presidential election. President Joe Biden and his presumptive Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, took their duel to the Texas border on Thursday.
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Biden visited Brownsville, Texas, and the Rio Grande Valley region, where illegal immigration has plummeted.
Meanwhile, President Trump visited the Eagle Pass region of Texas, which has become a flashpoint over Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and the Biden administration’s handling of illegal immigration.
Asylum seekers cross the Rio Grande River from Mexico into the United States on September 30, 2023 in Eagle Pass, Texas. (John Moore/Getty Images)
Biden began his administration by fulfilling a campaign promise to roll back his predecessor’s immigration policies. He has launched more than 90 executive actions regarding the border. But with the election looming and pressure from Republicans and some Democrats, Biden reversed his course and pushed for asylum restrictions.
Still, Biden took no meaningful executive action on the border, saying the issue was best resolved through legislation.
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Biden embraced sweeping bipartisan action to tie border security to wartime aid to Ukraine, but it was ultimately blocked by Senate Republicans.
