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The Trump administration marked a full year of “zero releases” at the southern border on Friday, a milestone officials touted as evidence that the president has effectively ended the catch-and-release policies that defined the Biden-era border crisis.
“Zero releases” refers to U.S. border patrol not releasing illegal border crossers into the U.S. interior after apprehension. It does not mean zero illegal crossings or zero apprehensions.
In a news release announcing the decline in releases at the southern border, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) pointed to broader enforcement statistics showing illegal crossings and apprehensions at levels officials said have not been seen in more than three decades. CBP said Border Patrol recorded 8,943 southwestern border apprehensions in April, 94% lower than the Biden administration’s monthly average, 96% below the December 2023 peak during Biden’s tenure and fewer than the number apprehended in just three days in April 2024.
“The days of catch and release are over,” said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “We are enforcing the nation’s laws and sending illegal aliens back to their home countries.”
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A Border Patrol agent on horseback monitors the area near where the U.S.-Mexico border fence meets the Pacific Ocean on Nov. 7, 2021. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, told Fox News Digital that the administration’s claim of “zero releases” from Border Patrol custody “does appear true,” but noted that the figure does not capture migrants transferred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody and later released on bond, parole, medical or humanitarian grounds, or after winning their cases.
“What a difference,” CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott said. “The U.S. Border Patrol released zero illegal aliens into our country again this month, unlike April 2024 when more than 68,000 were released under President Biden. Every minute of every day President Trump’s border security policies are making every American safer.”
DHS said the April daily average of 298 apprehensions was lower than a single hour during the height of the Biden-era surge, when officials said Border Patrol was averaging 336 apprehensions per hour in December 2023. CBP also said total encounters so far this fiscal year, 215,876, are 13% lower than the total recorded in April 2024 alone.
Beyond illegal crossings, CBP highlighted drug and trade enforcement numbers, noting that nationwide seizures of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl and marijuana by weight increased 60% from April 2024. The agency said it seized 463 pounds of fentanyl in April and has seized 61% more drugs so far this fiscal year than during the same period in FY 2024.
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This composite image shows President Biden, former President Trump and the southern border. ((AP Photo/Gerald Herbert and Fox News))
“The specific claim of catch and release is in reference to the practice involving Border Patrol releasing migrants directly from Border Patrol custody,” Reichlin-Melnick clarified when speaking to Fox News Digital. “Some people are still crossing the border, and then eventually being released. It’s just that they’re not being released directly from the Border Patrol.”
Reichlin-Melnick acknowledged that Trump’s hardline immigration approach has produced results at the border, saying apprehensions are “down significantly” and that “the hardened tactics against migrants has produced results.” But he argued the administration’s policies have gone too far by effectively shutting off access to asylum at the southern border.
“The Trump administration has sent the message to the world that the United States is no longer a place where people can seek safety,” Reichlin-Melnick said.
Reichlin-Melnick agreed the asylum system had long needed major reform, including more asylum officers, more immigration judges and changes to screening standards. But, he said the goal should not be to end access to the system altogether, something he suggested the Trump administration has effectively done.
Migrants seen at the border trying to reach through a barrier. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
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“I think most Americans believe we should be a place where people can find safety,” he said, invoking Ronald Reagan’s image of America as a “shining city on a hill.” “I don’t think the answer was to shut it off completely.”
DHS officials, however, have argued the dramatic decline in border crossings shows the administration’s policies are working after years of record-setting illegal immigration under Biden.
Fox News Digital reached out to representatives for Joe Biden, but did not receive a response in time for publication.
