The Quote Below—More Misinformation from the Media
“The Biden Administration will begin paying for Panama to detain and deport more of the migrants streaming through Central America en route to the United States, the latest White House effort to curb illegal crossings at the southern border, officials said Tuesday. . . .
“Illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border have plunged since early June when President Biden announced emergency measures to block migrants from accessing the U.S. asylum system. The number of migrants crossing into the United States — which has reached record levels in recent years — is currently lower than at any point since Biden took office in 2021, according to the latest government data.
“U.S. agents made about 84,000 arrests along the southern border last month, down from 118,000 in May. The drop in illegal crossings was even more precipitous over the past week, according to U.S. officials tracking the numbers, with some recent days slipping to about 2,000 arrests along the entire southern border.
“Biden officials are eager to keep border crossings out of the news and avoid giving presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump more ammunition to attack the president’s record before the November election.
“The Panama funding announcement comes less than a month before July 28 presidential elections in Venezuela that could bring a new surge of out-migration. Authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro is seeking to extend his 11-year rule, and nearly 8 million Venezuelans have left their homeland during that time, creating one of the largest displaced populations in the world, according to U.N. statistics.” – U.S. Will Fund Deportations from Panama, Expanding Migration Crackdown, Nick Miroff, Washington Post, 7/2/24 [Link]
Fact Check of Above Quote: With great fanfare, the Biden Administration announced cooperation with Panama to help stem the flow of illegal aliens through that country. One problem with the deal is that it lacks timetables and other details. Some critics speculate that it will function only until the election in November. As this article concedes, “Biden officials” would like to defuse the border as a political issue.
Certainly the administration is not above manipulating perceptions for political reasons. This is clear in its claims, repeated by the Washington Post, that border crossings by illegal aliens are sharply down since President Biden issued his executive order to secure the border. This has happened in large part because the administration, far preceding the executive order, simply doesn’t count many illegal aliens as being illegal.
Chad Wolf, former acting Secretary of Home land Security, explains how this statistical sleight-of-hand works: “The Biden Administration is working overtime to tell you that illegal border apprehensions are down. But what they won’t tell you is that inadmissible aliens at Ports of Entry are skyrocketing. Through direct advertising and direction, the Biden Administration is pushing illegal aliens through Ports of Entry to conceal the true nature of the crisis. May 2024 saw a 368 percent increase of inadmissible aliens at Ports of Entry when compared [with] May 2021. In fact, every month since May 2023 has exceeded over 100,000 inadmissible aliens at Ports of Entry. By comparison, the average under the Trump Administration was 4,200.”
This deception has continued since Biden proclaimed his order in June. His administration claims that the end of June saw the lowest number of illegal crossings since he took office. Again, this doesn’t include the numerous phony asylum-seekers who come in and get legal residence through Biden’s misinterpretation of parole law as well as through numerous loopholes allowed under the executive order.
Some people believe we should be trustful of statistics because “figures don’t lie.” They should be aware, however, that liars can figure.