After bringing illegal border crossings to an all-time low a month ago, President Donald Trump has done it again. Over the course of February, U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) arrested 8,326 illegal immigrants attempting to enter the U.S., marking a record low in attempted illegal border crossings in one month.

Border czar Tom Homan announced Monday that Trump and his administration had beaten their own record: illegal border crossings dropped to 7,181 over the course of March. “I started as a Border Patrol Agent in 1984, which was 41 years ago. I cannot recall a single month since then that the numbers have been that low,” Homan quipped over social media. He added, “The men and women of the Border Patrol have proven what they can accomplish when they are allowed to do their job and complete the mission of their agency.”

“The last administration had the Border Patrol releasing millions of illegal aliens into the United States, which caused more and more to come,” Homan recalled, referring to the open borders policies of then-president Joe Biden. The border czar continued, “Thanks to President Trump and his game[-]changing policies, those days are over. Thank you to the patriots of the Border Patrol who are making this country safe again!”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) confirmed the numbers shared by Homan, adding that apprehensions at the country’s southwestern border have fallen to a daily average of 230 under Trump, compared to over 5,000 a day under Biden. Acting CBP Commissioner Pete Flores said in a statement, “Under the leadership of President Trump and [Homeland Security] Secretary [Kristi] Noem, the administration has taken bold, decisive action to restore control at the border. Border Patrol agents are empowered like never before to shut down unlawful entry and protect American lives.” He continued, “The message is clear: the border is closed to illegal crossings, and for those still willing to test our resolve, know this — you will be prosecuted, and you will be deported.”

Appearing on Tuesday night’s episode of “Washington Watch,” Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) emphasized the difference between the Biden administration’s handling of the border and the Trump administration’s, saying, “We didn’t need to pass any more laws. We just needed a president who would enforce the law. And that’s exactly what President Trump has done.” He noted that “during the Biden administration … there were no consequences to coming to the country outside of legal channels.” Cornyn observed that, under Trump, there are consequences, adding, “I would say that we’re seeing some deterrence, that is, people who know that they’re not going to be allowed into the country absent a legally valid claim aren’t coming. And that’s had a dramatic impact.”

One of those deterrents is the threat of deportation. As The Washington Stand previously reported, the Trump administration has moved rapidly to target and deport members of Tren de Aragua (TdA) and Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), violent transnational gangs which have been formally designated foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. State Department. Cornyn commented, “If there [are] people who certainly we do not want in the United States, it’s hardened criminals, and particularly those under final orders of deportation.” The senator added that Homan, who has been charged with orchestrating mass deportations, “is focusing on the worst of the worst.”

Homan recently led a series of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Boston, a known “sanctuary city” harboring illegal immigrants. Of the 370 illegal immigrants arrested across Massachusetts in the operation, over 200 have criminal records, including murder, child rape, drug trafficking, and armed robbery. According to ICE’s Boston field office, all of the arrests were “at large,” meaning the criminals arrested were walking the streets, instead of awaiting ICE in a jail or prison on a detainer. In fact, in several cases, Boston and Massachusetts authorities refused to honor ICE detainers, releasing criminal illegal immigrants into the streets before ICE could arrive to arrest and remove them.

U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Leah B. Foley said in a statement, “Everyone should agree that we cannot and will not tolerate individuals who not only violate our immigration laws but then commit crimes that endanger our communities. Those who enter and remain in this country unlawfully are breaking the law.” ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde related, “Throughout this enhanced enforcement operation, we targeted the most dangerous alien offenders in some of the most crime-infested neighborhoods in and around Boston. Our efforts resulted in 370 arrests throughout the commonwealth.” She added, “The Commonwealth is a safer place for our residents to live and work because ICE and our federal law enforcement partners arrested hundreds of alien offenders and removed them from the streets of Massachusetts.”

However, both Homan and Noem have warned that funds for the mass deportation program promised by the president are running low. Cornyn called on Congress to follow through on the agenda the president was elected to execute and provide the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its officers the funding needed to continue mass deportations. “The first thing we can do is provide the funds that Tom Homan needs … to provide for detention facilities and for additional personnel,” Cornyn explained. He continued, “You can imagine, this is a very labor-intensive job, identifying these immigrants who are illegally in the country and then detaining them and then sending them back to their home country.” He added, “In order to actually make this permanent, we may need to consider additional legislation.”

The senator further explained, “Most of this is occurring under an executive order, which would expire at the end of President Trump’s term. And in fact, that’s what happened the first time — is all the executive orders that President Trump put in place, President Biden withdrew all those and created the open border.”