FAIR: August Border Encounters Highest on Record; Administration Insists it Has Taken Historic Action to Secure the Border

WASHINGTON, Sept. 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The following statement was issued by Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), in response to the release of DHS data indicating that August border encounters reached an all-time high:

"More than three weeks into September, the Department of Homeland Security finally released its border encounter data for August. All it takes is a quick glance at the numbers to understand why they were trying so hard to hide the harsh reality from the American public.

"In total, there were 304,162 border encounters during August in spite of brutally hot temperatures, the highest monthly number on record. Breaking down the numbers further, southwest border encounters numbered 232,972 – an increase of 50,000 over July. Encounters of family unit jumped to 116,721, the highest in four years, while the number of unaccompanied children increased to 14,259. With still another month of data to be recorded for the fiscal year, total encounters, 2,860,127, have already eclipsed last year's totals and are on pace to exceed 3 million encounters, not including hundreds of thousands of 'gotaways'.

"While the administration has refused to even admit there is a crisis at the border, the growing numbers of migrants entering illegally and the impact that they are having on communities all across the country can now be categorized as a disaster. It is a disaster created and perpetuated by the policies of the Biden administration. President Biden has not taken historic action to secure the border. He has taken illegal actions of historic proportions to throw open the borders.

"With onset of fall, and a push by the administration and its open-borders allies to ignore federal statutes and grant work authorization to migrants more quickly, the dubious record set in August will be short-lived. Preliminary data indicate that the numbers in September will be even higher and will continue to grow until the administration decides to stop incentivizing mass illegal immigration and begins honoring its constitutional responsibility to enforce the border and our immigration laws."

Contact: Joey Chester, 406-871-8391, jchester@fairus.org

ABOUT FAIR

Founded in 1979, FAIR is the country's largest immigration reform group. With over 3 million members and supporters nationwide, FAIR fights for immigration policies that serve national interests, not special interests. FAIR believes that immigration reform must enhance national security, improve the economy, protect jobs, preserve our environment, and establish a rule of law that is recognized and enforced.

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SOURCE Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR)