Trump Touts Record Decline in Illegal Border Crossings During Congressional Address

President Trump highlights a historic drop in illegal immigration and renews calls for funding to support mass deportation efforts.

Illegal border crossings in February 2025 dropped to 8,326, the lowest monthly figure since 1968, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.
Trump attributed the decline to his administration's aggressive border enforcement policies and declared the situation a national emergency upon taking office.
The president requested additional funding from Congress to execute what he described as the largest deportation operation in U.S. history, surpassing the 1950s-era Operation Wetback under President Eisenhower.
Critics, including Democratic leaders and immigrant rights groups, condemned Trump’s rhetoric and policies as xenophobic and harmful to immigrant communities and local economies.
Immigration courts face a record backlog of 3.7 million cases, with predictions of the highest number of deportation rulings in a single year if current trends continue.