DHS Claims 10 Months of Zero Border Releases as Illegal Crossings and Drug Seizures Shift
The Department of Homeland Security says that, for 10 consecutive months through February, U.S. Border Patrol has not released any migrants apprehended at the border into the U.S. interior, citing what it calls an “enforcement‑first” approach and historically low illegal‑crossing numbers. According to a DHS press release summarized by Fox News, CBP recorded 26,963 encounters nationwide in February, down 22% from January and 88% below the monthly average during the Biden administration, with just 6,603 apprehensions at the southwest border—figures officials say are 92% below the past three‑decade monthly average and 97% below the December 2023 peak. Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott are using the data to argue the border is now at its most secure point in modern history, framing the numbers as proof that closing off releases at the border can dramatically cut crossings. At the same time, CBP reports that narcotics seizures surged to more than 79,000 pounds in February, the highest since October 2021, with fentanyl seizures up 67% month‑over‑month and sharp increases in marijuana, methamphetamine and cocaine seizures, suggesting smuggling networks are still active even as migrant flows fall. The claims are already fueling partisan debate online over how DHS is counting “encounters” versus gotaways, whether zero‑release figures simply mean more rapid removals or offshore processing, and how much weight to give seizure totals as a proxy for the overall drug flow.
📌 Key Facts
- DHS says February marked the tenth straight month in which U.S. Border Patrol released zero migrants from border custody into the U.S. interior.
- CBP reports 26,963 nationwide encounters and 6,603 southwest‑border apprehensions in February, down 22% from January and 88% below the Biden‑era monthly average, and 92–97% below long‑term and December 2023 peaks.
- CBP says it seized more than 79,000 pounds of narcotics nationwide in February, including a 67% increase in fentanyl seizures compared with January.
📊 Relevant Data
The decline in U.S. border crossings in 2025-2026 is attributed to increased enforcement activities, including a significant rise in deportations and removals, leading to negative net migration for the first time in 50 years.
US, for 1st time in 50 years, experienced negative net migration in 2025 — ABC News
Migration from Latin America to the U.S. in the 2020s is driven primarily by economic disenchantment, limited opportunities, rising security challenges, and violence in origin countries.
Rising Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean Has Ushered in a New Era — Migration Policy Institute
Drug overdose death rates in the U.S. are highest among American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) people at approximately 65 per 100,000, compared to 32 per 100,000 for Black people and 25 per 100,000 for White people in 2024, with rates falling for Whites but rising for other groups.
Opioid Overdose Deaths: National Trends and Variation by Demographics and States — KFF
The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act shifted U.S. immigration policy to family reunification, leading to increased immigration from Asia and Latin America, with immigrants and their descendants accounting for 55% of U.S. population growth from 1965 to 2015, and the foreign-born population rising from 5% in 1965 to 14% by 2023.
The Other Side of Immigration: The Post-1965 Transformation of American Racial Politics — Duke University Press
High levels of immigration contribute to increased housing prices in the U.S., with studies showing that immigration-generated demand raises prices by about 2% annually in certain areas, accounting for one-quarter of total price increases in some markets during the 2020s.
Impact of immigration on house prices — The Week in Housing
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