A record 3.2 million migrants are expected to cross into the United States this year, 1 million more than during past spikes in the Reagan and Clinton eras, according to a new outlook.
“We forecast U.S. southwest border encounters by Customs and Border Patrol at 2.7 million for FY 2024, based on the last three months of data, adjusted seasonally. Apprehensions look to come in just a hair above 2023 levels. Inadmissibles, those presenting at official crossing points without appropriate documentation, are slated to rise by almost 200,000,” Princeton Policy Advisors said in its latest analysis.
Add in parolees and “gotaways,” and the number jumps another 500,000.
“Undocumented entry has exploded under the Biden administration’s Open Borders policy, rising from an estimated 1.1 million in 2021 to our forecast of 3.2 million for 2024,” the report said.
President Steven Kopits added in his report that at 3.2 million, the flood of illegal immigrants will likely swamp new job openings, creating preelection tension from blue-collar and low-wage workers over President Joe Biden’s open border policies.
“We forecast that undocumented entry will exceed U.S. job growth in 2024. Thus, the resentments seen last year will likely become exacerbated as the U.S. economy is unable to fully absorb arriving migrants. For President Biden and Democrats, this represents a huge risk. The path to defeat in November is not principally through disaffected independents and moderate Republicans, but rather through low-wage blacks and Hispanics who will turn to Trump in fear that another four years of Open Borders will gut their wages,” Kopits said in his report shared with Secrets.
Kopits has a good record predicting immigration levels and bases outlooks on data from the Department of Homeland Security, Pew Research, and other sources. His new report comprehensively addresses all types of border crossings to reach 3.2 million.
“’Undocumented entry,’” he said, “includes those apprehended at the southwest border but released into the interior, either directly by Border Patrol or later by ICE or HHS. It also includes CBP One paroles and categorical paroles for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans. And finally, the estimate includes ‘gotaways.’”
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Politically, the border crisis has become one of the biggest threats to Biden’s reelection. Most voters believe that former President Donald Trump did a better job protecting the border.
Biden has tried to change the nation’s view of his border policies. He recently toured a border area in Texas but failed to reach out to families affected by the crisis. He also did not attend the funeral this week of a border agent killed on duty in a helicopter crash.
