Why the number of encounters at the southern U.S. border does not mean what the GOP says it means

Source: Why the number of encounters at the southern U.S. border does not mean what the GOP says it means

But an “encounter” does not mean a single person or a first attempt to enter.

The Department of Homeland Security defines an encounter as a noncitizen who is declared to be inadmissible for not having a U.S. passport, green card or visa. But “encounters” also includes the people who are allowed to stay in the U.S. as they apply for asylum or a humanitarian visa for reasons such as political persecution or fleeing human trafficking.

Migrants and asylum seekers often try to enter multiple times and are counted separately each time.

For example, in August 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol revealed that over 22% of encounters are people who had at least one prior encounter in the previous 12 months.

The report further reveals that only 36% percent of the encounters with people from Mexico and northern Central America are unique encounters – and only 35% percent for those from Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua.

It is hard to know, with the current counting system, just how many unique individuals interacted with agents at the border. What is certain is that because of multiple counts of the same individuals, the total number is less than the 4.2 million new undocumented immigrants that Cruz claims have entered the U.S. since the start of the Biden administration