During the Biden administration, approximately seven million migrants have been apprehended while attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally.
In response, Vice President Kamala Harris has called for stricter measures to tackle the ongoing crisis at the southern border.
As part of her 2024 presidential campaign, Harris made her first visit to the U.S.-Mexico border, stopping in Douglas, Arizona, a town of fewer than 17,000 residents. She emphasized her commitment to reforming the "broken immigration system" and addressing the deadly fentanyl crisis, while criticizing her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, for "fanning the flames of fear and division" around immigration.
Government figures reveal a record number of migrants apprehended during President Joe Biden's tenure, fueling ongoing criticism of both Biden and Harris. As immigration remains a major issue for voters, Arizona—a key swing state with a significant Latino population—is expected to be a critical battleground for both parties.
During her visit, Harris met with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials and observed part of a border barrier constructed during former President Barack Obama's administration. She received a briefing on drug enforcement operations and the technology being used to combat illegal drug smuggling, with a particular focus on fentanyl. According to her campaign, more fentanyl was intercepted at ports of entry in 2022 and 2023 than during the previous five years combined.
Harris reiterated her plan to disrupt the "entire global fentanyl supply chain," which has contributed to a staggering rise in overdose deaths in the U.S. Fentanyl overdoses have now become the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45, with more than 107,000 Americans dying from drug overdoses in 2023 alone.
To combat this crisis, Harris pledged to double funding for prosecuting transnational criminal organizations and cartels, and to modernize U.S. screening and vetting infrastructure.
Immigration Remains a Hot-Button Issue
Meanwhile, Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, have increased their anti-immigration rhetoric, falsely accusing legal immigrants in Vance's home state of Ohio of criminal activity and job theft. Trump has placed the blame for the rise in illegal migration squarely on Harris, questioning why she did not address the issue earlier in the Biden administration.
"The architect of this destruction is Kamala Harris," Trump said during a recent appearance at Trump Tower. "She keeps talking about how she supposedly wants to fix the border. Why didn't she do it four years ago?"
Recent polls indicate that immigration will be a critical issue in the upcoming election. A Reuters/Ipsos poll from last month showed that 43% of voters trust Trump more on immigration issues, compared to 33% who favored Harris. The remaining 24% were undecided or supported another candidate.
As migration from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia to the U.S. continues to rise, voters are increasingly concerned about the economic, cultural, and security impacts. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that the foreign-born population in the country grew by nearly 20%, reaching 47.8 million between 2010 and 2023, further fueling the debate around immigration policy. Photo by Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, Wikimedia commons.