America’s southern border will soon be facing a “staggering” number of illegal immigrants, CNN anchor Brianna Keilar said on Friday. Borde...
America’s southern border will soon be facing a “staggering” number of illegal immigrants, CNN anchor Brianna Keilar said on Friday.
Border Patrol chief Raul Ortiz expects about 8,000 apprehensions per day this spring, according to CNN.
That number “will probably become the norm over the next 30 to 45 days,” Oritz told CNN.
“U.S. officials are scrambling to prepare for a record-breaking surge of migrants attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border this spring,” Keilar said in a video posted on Twitter by the Republican National Committee.
“In a CNN exclusive interview, the chief of Border Patrol says he is bracing for a staggering 8,000 apprehensions a day,” she said, adding, “That is a huge number.”
Later in the clip, reporter Patrica Alvarez noted that Border Patrol is already “over capacity.”
“This week they had 16,000 people in custody in their facilities,” she said.
Since the federal fiscal year began in October, Border Patrol has arrested 940,000 illegal immigrants.
Border crossings are cyclical, with spring and summer being the prime months.
Customs and Border Protection data shows that about 200,000 people will be detained this month, the highest number since August, according to The Washington Post.
The Post put the number of illegal immigrants currently being held at 15,000, roughly double the levels of last month.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are expecting a “mass migration event,” according to an email the outlet said it obtained.
ICE is looking for groups to shelter and transport illegal immigrants who are released into the U.S., the email said.
Border Patrol officials near Del Rio, Texas, said their facilities there have “reached capacity.”
Illegal immigrants are still being processed, though, with the agency vowing to “detain those who pose a public safety risk.”
The spring influx comes as the Biden administration is mulling whether to continue Title 42, a pandemic-era rule that allows many illegal immigrants to be turned away at the border to limit the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S.
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