Illegal immigration across the southwest border has doubled in the past four months, according to new government data, reversing a trend from the beginning of President Donald Trump's administration, The Washington Times reported Monday.
More than 30,000 illegal immigrants were caught in August, which was 22 percent higher than in July and an increase of almost 100 percent from April, when fewer than 16,000 illegal immigrants were arrested by the Border Patrol or detained at ports of entry.
These numbers illustrate that the early gains of Trump's administration in this area appear to be wearing off.
Despite the sharp increases in illegal immigrants, officials pointed out, however, the numbers of those arrested are still lower than they were a year before under then President Barack Obama.
"These numbers represent a 41 percent decrease as compared to August of 2016, and year-to-date totals for FY 2017 are 24 percent lower than the same period in FY 2016," the Customs and Border Protection said in a memo.
Officials explained to the Times the number of people arrested is a general barometer of all those illegally crossing the border.
The increase in illegal immigrants entering the country were evident in all sectors of that population, including various nationalities and children arriving alone, as well as families traveling together.
The release of the numbers comes as Trump has pressed for border security to be attached to any new bill to legalize those illegal immigrants who were brought over the border when they were children.
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