Border crossings have plummeted considerably since President Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election, according to a report from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).
The report notes a whopping 85 percent drop in apprehensions at the southern border compared to the same time period in 2024. This suggests that Trump’s election has discouraged many would-be illegal immigrants from attempting to gain entry into the country.
There were 61,465 apprehensions along the border in January, according to the CBP report. In December, the agency reported 96,048. Border Patrol apprehended 176,195 at the southwest border in January 2024, one year ago.
CBP’s report also noted that it has confiscated record numbers of deadly fentanyl as smugglers attempted to bring it into the country.
In the last two fiscal years, CBP seized record amounts of fentanyl – nearly 50,000 pounds – enough to produce more than 2 billion lethal doses. In January 2025, CBP seized 1,029 pounds of fentanyl, and methamphetamine seizures increased 15%.
What is noteworthy about this trend is the impact that Trump’s victory had last year. On his first day in office, the president signed a series of sweeping executive orders aimed at curbing illegal immigration.
These include an order declaring the border crisis a “national emergency” and framing illegal immigration as an “invasion.” This allows the executive branch to deploy additional military resources, such as armed personnel, to bolster border security and continue construction of the wall.
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Trump also signed an executive order ending birthright citizenship, a move that angered many on the left. This order is currently facing challenges in court.
The president also reinstated the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which requires asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while their cases are assessed. He also eliminated the CBP One mobile app, which enabled migrants to schedule asylum appointments at ports of entry. About 30,000 appointments were immediately canceled.
Yet, even though Trump signed those orders, it has still been less than 30 days since he has been in office, meaning these policies have not yet been fully implemented, and we are still seeing a massive drop in border apprehension. This suggests that Trump was able to deter this many migrants from trying to cross the border illegally simply by being elected. Would-be illegal immigrants know they are no longer dealing with an administration that will roll out the red carpet for those seeking to subvert immigration laws.
President Trump’s policies – and his presence – have already made a huge difference when it comes to handling immigration. It was reported last week that apprehensions dropped about 90 percent from February 2024. The New York Post reported that the U.S. is “on track to have the lowest monthly border crossings in at least 25 years.”
Law enforcement authorities in border towns are already seeing the impact of Trump’s policies, and it has come as a relief. One sheriff told The Post that the situation has “gone from one extreme to the other, historic levels of people crossing, historic levels of the low apprehensions.”
What is interesting is that Trump seems to have accomplished in less than a month what the Biden administration could not – or would not – achieve in four years.
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