If you visit Tijuana, right up to the border wall, you can witness deportations in their final stages. At the edge of a Mexican freeway running along the border, there’s a nondescript metal door. On any given morning, a Mexican official will unlock the padlock on the Mexican side while an American immigration agent unlocks the padlock on the U.S. side. Dozens, sometimes hundreds, of people are then pushed back into Mexico. Some wander to shelters; others camp just outside the door, hoping that staying close might improve their chances of getting back in. This deportation door saw significant use under Donald Trump, but no president has used it more than Joe Biden.
Trump’s Criticism and Biden’s Response
You wouldn’t have guessed that from Trump’s 92-minute speech at the Republican National Convention earlier this month, where he criticized the Biden-Harris administration over Biden’s immigration record, accusing the president of throwing the border open.
“Under the Trump administration, if you came in illegally, you were apprehended immediately and you were deported,” Trump proclaimed, as the audience waved “MASS DEPORTATION NOW!” banners. “That’s why, to keep our family safe, the Republican platform promises to launch the largest deportation operation in the history of our country.”
Biden, recovering from a case of Covid at his beach house in Delaware, didn’t offer counterprogramming. Kamala Harris, now the likely Democratic nominee, has conspicuously avoided discussing immigration since taking over the top of the ticket. This might be because Harris and Biden’s strongest defense would sound unappealing to their liberal supporters. In 2020, Biden campaigned on a promise to place a moratorium on deportations, even apologizing for the Obama-Biden administration’s record number of deportations. This makes it tricky for Biden or Harris to state a simple fact while campaigning in 2024: their administration has deported millions more migrants than Trump ever managed.
Biden’s Immigration Record
Most Americans don’t understand how many people the Biden-Harris administration has removed from the country. This has allowed Trump to repeatedly claim he’ll deport “millions” of people every year if he retakes the White House, portraying Biden as feckless. In reality, Biden has that gas pedal pushed almost all the way to the floor. Under Biden, migrants have been removed from the U.S. at a blistering pace, pushing the country’s deportation infrastructure to its limit. It’s unclear how Trump could top him if he takes back the White House next year.
During just his first two years in office, President Joe Biden used Title 42 to expel over 2.8 million migrants. This public health statute, kept in place by Biden, allowed rapid expulsion of migrants without the normal court process. Trump’s entire time in the White House saw only 2 million removals.
Title 42 and Deportations
While millions of migrants were expelled during Biden’s first years in office, the number of formal deportations shrank. Title 42 expulsions could happen rapidly without a trial, and the subject was almost always arrested near the border. Deportations, on the other hand, come after an immigration judge officially orders someone removed. During Biden’s first two years, ICE deported under 200,000 people total, less than any single year during the Trump era.
As soon as Title 42 ended in May 2023, deportations skyrocketed to historic numbers. According to the Migration Policy Institute, Biden “removed or returned” 775,000 unauthorized immigrants from May 2023 to May 2024, more than any previous year since 2010.
Challenges and Future Prospects
Even if Trump takes office next year, it’s uncertain how he could significantly increase deportations. The U.S. deportation system is already at its limit, with structural limitations in manpower and resources. Deporting any one person costs thousands of dollars, involving complex legal and logistical processes.
Jeh Johnson, former Secretary of Homeland Security under Obama, highlighted these limitations, noting the substantial resources required and the long training period for ICE agents. Additionally, deportations involve cooperation with foreign countries, some of which are reluctant to accept their nationals.
Trump’s campaign promises mass deportation efforts, but implementing such policies would be a colossal challenge, both financially and logistically. As the debate continues, the effectiveness and feasibility of these immigration policies remain critical issues for both parties.
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