The Border Crisis: The 2024 Political Battleground

Credit: Greg Bulla

In the wake of Biden’s State of the Union Address, the issue of illegal immigration on the southern border has, remarkably, gripped Democrats and Republicans alike. For Republicans, the border crisis presents an opportunity to clamp down on apparent “catch and release” policies and Biden’s lenient rhetoric, which they cite as primary causes of the recent surge in illegal immigration. Republicans have keenly harnessed border control as a key position for them during the upcoming presidential election, forcing a clear message of Republican stability against rogue Democratic policy. Democrats, on the other hand, are attempting to recover their reputation on the border through a full reversal in policy seen in the early Biden administration. On this particular issue, the party’s reversal has been most apparent in both the 2025 Fiscal Year Budget Proposal and in an overall shift in rhetoric from the president. 

The change in direction by the Democrats is shifting the narrative around the party in the eyes of the American people. Yet, the “catch and release” approach remains a major strain on the Democrat’s border reputation. In a subcommittee hearing titled “The Consequences of Catch and Release at the Border,” there was a clear presentation of a porous border caused by poor policy from the Biden administration. In the hearing, Jessica Vaughan, Director of Policy Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, and Matt O’Brien, Director of Investigations at the Immigration Reform Law Institute, discussed the effects of the administration’s policy on the United States at large. Both noted that the border was far too accessible under the current administration, with immigration institutions overwhelmed and costs to the American people rising. By the numbers alone, their claim does not seem dubious.  The estimated 1.3 million migrants that have been given parole and temporary residence in 2023 alone represent a significant jump; former President Trump’s numbers never surpassed 250,000 paroles (Washington Post, 2024). 

Mrs. Vaughan began first by addressing the expenses on the U.S. taxpayer, noting that the cost of services to illegal immigrants in both the short and long terms has already spiked into the tens of billions of dollars, with further funds to “shelter, health care, schooling, criminal justice costs, and more” expected to raise this total significantly (Committee on Oversight, 2024).

Further, key institutions including immigration courts have been overwhelmed and unable to properly vet people crossing the border. In the subcommittee hearing, Representative Virginia Foxx questioned Mr. O’Brien on the surge, asking whether the courts could realistically vet people coming into the country in light of the spike in migration. O’Brien responded with an assured, “No, it’s not possible at all. (...) vetting is something that happens because people have a background that can be traced. (...) someone coming from a rural village in Guatemala or places like Yemen, there aren’t any records like that” (Committee on Oversight, 2024). This is a large part of the issue. Immigration is a long and tedious process to ensure the national security of the United States. However, with an increase in the rates of migration on top of the limited documentation available, court systems have become backlogged and unable to process migrants effectively. 

As reported by the Department of Justice, the number of pending immigration cases has doubled since the beginning of the Biden administration, which has had a massive impact on the asylum process. Backlogging in the asylum process has extended the court hearing process to more than five years down the line, incentivizing migrants to enter with flimsy asylum claims to work and live within the United States before being processed by courts (Committee on Oversight, 2024). While the process under previous administrations has been to place a moratorium on asylum seekers during migration spikes, the Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, has instead decided to “dismiss tens of thousands of cases in immigration courts” (Homeland Security Republicans, 2023). This policy evades the legal proceedings used to ensure a rigorous level of security in evaluating immigrants. 

In fiscal year 2023, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), granted over $380 million to local municipalities for expenses related to released illegal immigrants (Committee on Oversight, 2024). The extra cost to the American taxpayer is of huge concern, as American citizens historically foot the bill of illegal immigration. The average fiscal drain of an illegal migrant totals $68,000 through their overwhelming use of the welfare system: 59% of illegal migrant households use some sort of welfare program as compared to 39% of Americans. Pointing out such data is vital because it highlights that illegal migrants pose a further strain on the welfare state, which hurts the most in-need Americans.

These numbers are concerning to both parties, and voters are increasingly displeased with the handling of the border, of course with varying degrees between the parties. (Pew Research Center, 2024) While Republicans have in recent years had the image of authority at the border, Democrat’s recent position is directly countering the narrative and forcing the blame on Republicans. Despite the failure at the beginning of the Biden presidency to handle the crisis, the Democrats have a remarkably appealing case against Republicans for their role in exacerbating and delaying the emergency. Earlier this year, President Biden worked with Democrats and Republicans to forge a bipartisan border deal, a proposal that was originally called for by Republicans. In an effort to secure more funding for Ukraine, Democrats conceded demands of pathways to citizenship, taking the side of Republicans on an issue they long were divided on (Politico, 2024). However, Republicans failed to support this bipartisan bill, allowing it to fall through in the face of a massive border crisis that the party so actively hammered home as a key issue. 

This direction from Republicans can be seen as a cynical ploy to keep the issue alive until November. The border issue does hold massive value for Republicans, as Trump has continually argued against Biden’s border policy in favor of more stringent enforcement. In Trump’s campaign rallies and campaign ads, the rhetoric of Biden being the cause of disastrous border outcomes is a mainstay narrative that points the blame directly at his upcoming opponent. Trump played a large part in the rejection of the deal, as he demanded fellow Republicans to rebuke it and presented it as a winning issue for the presidential race (NBC News, 2024).

On top of attempting bipartisan policy, Biden’s fiscal year 2025 budget outlines clear funding for increased border security through a balance of $25.9 billion for border services, an expansion of $1.9 billion from the previous budgeting. This includes increased border patrol numbers, greater funding for border security technology, transportation and bedding for detention centers, and more (White House, 2024).

The border will remain a significant issue during this upcoming election cycle, with both parties having clear successes on which to run, while at the same time holding valuable criticisms of the other side of the aisle. What remains clear is that the border dilemma cannot remain idle. Left untamed, illegal immigration will continue to exhaust the welfare state and the courts, reducing benefits to Americans and overwhelming systems put in place to assist genuine asylum seekers. 

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