Border Enforcement

The enforcement of immigration laws is a complex and hotly-debated topic. Learn more about the costs of immigration enforcement and the ways in which the U.S. can enforce our immigration laws humanely and in a manner that ensures due process.

Recent Features

TESTIMONY
Providing Perspective on the Application of Immigration Law at the US Southwest Border

The reality at the U.S. southern border is complicated. Dive into the role and authority of the executive branch and immigration enforcement agencies. 

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FACT SHEET
Rising Border Encounters in 2021: An Overview and Analysis

For generations, the United States has seen periodic cycles of migration. The arrival of high numbers of asylum seekers is a humanitarian protection management challenge, not a security challenge.

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All Border Enforcement Content

  • Blog

Multiple Lawsuits Filed Against Trump’s National Emergency Declaration

February 19, 2019

Speaking from the Rose Garden on Friday, President Trump invoked the National Emergency Act after Congress refused to provide full funding for additions to the U.S.-Mexico border wall. By...

  • Blog

Trump Declares National Emergency to Fund His Border Wall

February 15, 2019

Following three weeks of spending negotiations, Congress passed a budget deal on Thursday to fund the federal government through the end of September. Even though it did not include the money...

  • Blog

Border Towns Are Among the Safest in the United States

February 12, 2019

On Monday evening in El Paso, Texas, two very different images of the U.S.-Mexico border emerged. President Trump held a rally to make the case for his border wall again, repeating his usual...

  • Blog

Immigrant Mothers Are Filing Claims for Monetary Compensation in the Wake of Family Separation Crisis

February 11, 2019

In April 2018, the Trump administration officially rolled out its “zero tolerance” policy—a policy that has since been universally condemned for its cruel and unlawful practice of separating...

  • Blog

Letter to Nielsen Shows Potential Catastrophic Impact of Migrant Protection Protocols

February 8, 2019

The Trump administration began implementing a deeply troubling new policy on January 28, 2019, the “Migrant Protection Protocols” (MPP). Under the MPP, the government prevents asylum seekers from...

  • Blog

US Government to Force Migrants to Remain in Mexico and Await Their Immigration Court Hearings

January 25, 2019

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced plans to immediately launch a new policy to force asylum-seeking migrants to wait in Mexico for their immigration court hearing. Officially...

  • Blog

Promise to ‘Build the Wall’ Hurts Businesses and Residents Along the Border 

January 17, 2019

As the partial government shutdown stretches on, many individuals, families, and businesses around the country are struggling. At the heart of the shutdown and budget standoff is President Trump’s...

  • Blog

Time for a Real Conversation Around Border Security

January 8, 2019

There is no doubt that a thoughtful conversation needs to be had around border security. However, it must be grounded in the realities of who is actually arriving at the U.S. border with Mexico,...

  • Blog

No End In Sight as Shutdown Over Trump’s Border Wall Enters Third Week

January 4, 2019

Roughly 25 percent of the federal government closed on December 22 after President Trump declared his intent to veto any funding bill that didn’t contain five billion dollars for building a wall...

  • Blog

A Second Child Died in Border Patrol Custody. Why Is the Government Doubling Down on Deterrence?

January 2, 2019

In early December, seven-year-old Guatemalan Jakelin Caal died within hours after coming into the custody of Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Her tragic death brought renewed attention to the...

  • Special Report

Measuring In Absentia Removal in Immigration Court

Publication Date: 
January 28, 2021
This analysis of data provided by the federal government reveals that 83% of all nondetained immigrants with completed or pending removal cases attended all their hearings from 2008 to 2018.
  • Press Release

US Government Records Reveal Expanded Methods to Rush Deportations at Border

January 27, 2021
Newly released government records reveal U.S. immigration agencies' efforts in 2019 to rapidly deport thousands of people from the United States through the little-known Electronic Nationality Verification program.
  • Fact Sheet

The Electronic Nationality Verification Program: An Overview

Publication Date: 
January 26, 2021
U.S. immigration agencies use a range of programs to deport—or remove—certain noncitizens from the United States. Under the Trump administration, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and two of...
  • Blog

Biden Took Eight Administrative Actions on Immigration. Here’s What You Need to Know.

January 22, 2021

On his first day in office, President Biden took significant steps towards undoing the harm of the Trump administration’s immigration policies—and reforming our punitive and inhumane enforcement...

  • Fact Sheet

The Cost of Immigration Enforcement and Border Security

Publication Date: 
January 20, 2021
Since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2003, the federal government has spent an estimated $324 billion on the agencies that carry out immigration enforcement.
  • Blog

Trump’s Presidency Begins and Ends With Demonizing Immigrants

January 11, 2021

Five years ago, Donald Trump descended an elevator and declared that Mexico was sending rapists and “bringing crime” across the border. Now, while America still reels from the deadly...

  • Press Release

Immigrant Rights Advocates Ask Court to Block Trump Administration Attempt to Thwart Court Order

January 7, 2021
Immigrant rights advocates moved for a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration’s latest attempt to circumvent an earlier court order prohibiting the government from applying an asylum ban to people whom U.S. Customs and Border Protection had previously turned away from ports of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border.
  • Policy Briefs

Increase in Indefinite ICE Detention Without Foreseeable Removal Dates During COVID-19 Pandemic

Publication Date: 
January 6, 2021

Every year, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deports tens of thousands of...

  • Comments

Comment on CBP Proposed Rule To Drastically Expand the Use of Facial Recognition Technology

Publication Date: 
December 21, 2020
The Proposed Rule would drastically expand the use of unproven facial recognition technology at ports of entry throughout the United States.
  • Blog

Discriminatory Treatment of Haitians Throughout History Informs Current Policy at the US-Mexico Border

November 19, 2020

For years, the Trump administration has argued that limited capacity at ports of entry led to its policy of turning back asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border (the “turnback policy”). But a...

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