WASHINGTON _ The number of migrants crossing the U.S. southern border fell in June, the first major test of an immigration enforcement deal President Donald Trump negotiated with Mexico after threatening the country with tariffs.
About 104,000 migrants were caught after crossing into the U.S. or turned away at the Mexican border in June, compared with 144,000 a month earlier, Customs and Border Protection said Tuesday in a statement. The numbers had more than doubled from January to May, leading Trump to threaten tariffs unless Mexico did something to slow the flow of people across the border.
The countries struck a deal on June 7 in which Mexico agreed to deploy soldiers at its own southern border and increase enforcement along migration routes. The deal was somewhat temporary, and Mexico has said it will explore new measures if apprehensions didn't fall within 45 days of the countries' agreement.
Trump had already said the numbers had been reduced.
"The numbers are going down because Mexico is doing a lot," Trump told reporters on Sunday. "Thanks to Mexico, it's slowing down greatly, and I think you'll start seeing some very good numbers."
However, apprehensions traditionally dip in the summer months, when hot weather makes migration more arduous and dangerous, meaning that it's difficult to tell how much of the reduction can be attributed to Mexican enforcement. There were just 43,000 migrants apprehended at the southern border or deemed inadmissible to the U.S. in June 2018.
The true test of the U.S.-Mexico pact may have to wait until fall, when the numbers historically rise again. But the reduction in June is likely a signal that Trump's threatened tariffs are off the table for now.
The administration has come under criticism by Democrats and immigrant advocates for conditions at detention centers on the border, after a Department of Homeland Security watchdog report this month found "dangerous overcrowding" that poses an "immediate risk to the health and safety of DHS agents and officers, and to those detained."
Trump has bristled over the issue, accusing news organizations of exaggerating the plight of migrants in U.S. detention and blaming Democratic lawmakers for not moving faster to provide more money to improve conditions. He and other administration officials have criticized Democrats for dismissing the idea that the border is in crisis.
