After Republicans End “Catch and Release,” Democrats Want to Defund the Police

President Trump and Republicans Secured the Southern Border. Democrats Are Doing All They Can to Undo That Success and Revive Their Defund-the-Police Policies in the Process.

REPUBLICANS SECURED THE BORDER AND REVERSED DEMOCRATS’ HISTORIC BORDER CRISIS THAT WAS WREAKING HAVOC ACROSS THE COUNTRY

“The days of catch and release are over. We are enforcing the nation’s laws and sending illegal aliens back to their home countries.” – Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin

“The Trump administration marked a full year of ‘zero releases’ at the southern border on Friday, a milestone officials touted as evidence that the president has effectively ended the catch-and-release policies that defined the Biden-era border crisis.” (Fox News: Trump hits dramatic milestone in massive departure from Biden border plan: 'What a difference' – 5/15/26)

“‘Zero releases’ refers to U.S. border patrol not releasing illegal border crossers into the U.S. interior after apprehension.” (Fox News: Trump hits dramatic milestone in massive departure from Biden border plan: 'What a difference' – 5/15/26)

“The U.S. Border Patrol’s apprehensions along the southwest border in April (8,943) were 94%?lower than the monthly average of the Biden administration and 96%?below the peak of the Biden administration (December 2023). They were also less than what was apprehended in?3 days?in April 2024.” (U.S. Customs and Border Protection: Trump administration delivers a full year of zero releases at the border – 5/15/26)

“The number of U.S. Border Patrol apprehensions per day in April was less than a?single hour?during the height of the Biden administration (336 per hour in December 2023) and less than the number apprehended every 2 hours on average under the Biden administration.” (U.S. Customs and Border Protection: Trump administration delivers a full year of zero releases at the border – 5/15/26)

“Beyond illegal crossings, CBP highlighted drug and trade enforcement numbers, noting that nationwide seizures of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl and marijuana by weight increased 60% from April 2024.” (Fox News: Trump hits dramatic milestone in massive departure from Biden border plan: 'What a difference' – 5/15/26)

“The agency said it seized 463 pounds of fentanyl in April and has seized 61% more drugs so far this fiscal year than during the same period in FY 2024.” (Fox News: Trump hits dramatic milestone in massive departure from Biden border plan: 'What a difference' – 5/15/26)

DESPITE THIS SUCCESS, DEMOCRATS ARE DETERMINED TO BRING THE COUNTRY BACK TO THE DAYS OF THE BIDEN BORDER CRISIS

During President Biden’s tenure, there were 10.5 million migrant encounters along the southwest border, including known gotaways. (CBP: Southwest Land Border Encounters – accessed 5/19/26; Fox News’ Bill Melugin: post on X – 8/20/24)

Illegal border crossings hit record levels under Biden, averaging 2 million per year from 2021 to 2023. (The Washington Post: Trump vs. Biden on immigration: 12 charts comparing U.S. border security – 2/12/24)

Under the Biden administration, there were over 12,600 migrant encounters on a single day, a record for the southern border. (Fox News: Southern border hit by record number of migrant encounters in a single day as thousands flood into Texas – 12/19/23)

“After Mr. Biden became president, migrant encounters at the southern border quickly doubled, then kept rising. New arrivals overwhelmed border stations, then border towns, and eventually major cities like New York and Denver.” (The New York Times: How Biden Ignored Warnings and Lost Americans’ Faith in Immigration – 12/7/25)

- Texas, 2023: “The besieged U.S. southern border saw a record number of migrant encounters in a single day on Monday [December 18, 2023], as thousands flooded into Eagle Pass, Texas, amid a broader surge in recent weeks that has left authorities overwhelmed. There were over 12,600 migrant encounters on Monday, Customs and Border Protection sources told Fox.” (Fox News: Southern border hit by record number of migrant encounters in a single day as thousands flood into Texas – 12/19/23)

- New York City, 2024: “Just over 225,000 migrants have entered New York City since 2022. More than $6 billion has been spent on a hodgepodge of shelters that morphed into the largest system of emergency housing for migrants in the country.” (The New York Times: 8 Months Inside New York’s Migrant Shelters: Fear, Joy and Hope – 10/15/25)

- Chicago, 2024: “Chicago has received more than 46,000 new arrivals since August 2022, most of those arriving by bus, according to city officials. The sudden arrival of so many newcomers made the Windy City a front line in the nation’s migrant crisis. Some Chicago Democrats attempted to welcome the arrivals, while others complained that the influx overwhelmed shelters and the social safety net, expanding homeless encampments.” (The Washington Post: Chicago’s migrant crisis in spotlight as Democrats prepare for convention – 8/18/24)

- Denver, 2024: “By [January], Denver, a city of 750,000, had received nearly 40,000 migrants, the most per capita of any city in the nation, even as the flow of migrants slowed in the deep chill of winter. And the city has begun to feel the same sort of strains that have confronted New York and Chicago as they contended with their own migrant influxes.” (The New York Times: Big Burden of Migrant Influx Strains Denver – 2/15/24)

DEMOCRATS HAVE BEEN VERY CLEAR: THEY REFUSE TO FUND OR EVEN SUPPORT THOSE WHO KEEP AMERICA’S BORDERS SECURE

“Democrats won’t vote for ICE and CBP spending…” (Punchbowl News: AM: Reconciliation 2.0: Challenges, Opportunities and Tensions – 4/2/26)

Including last month’s vote advancing the Secure America Act, Senate Democrats have blocked extending funding for ICE and Border Patrol 17 times. (S.Con.Res. 33: Roll Call Vote #105 – 4/23/26; Senate Majority Leader: One Step Closer to Ending Democrats’ Dangerous Defund-the-Police Shutdown – 4/23/26)

Democrats have been clear about where they stand in terms of not respecting and not wanting to support border enforcement officers:
- “You’re here, adding $140 billion to an agency that nobody- to two, two, two groups – Border Patrol and ICE – that nobody respects in this country.” – Senate Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.)
- “Defund and abolish ICE.” – Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.)
- “I would say no today, I would say no yesterday, I would say no tomorrow.” – Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
- “[S]hutting down Homeland Security should be the result here if there’s no agreement… on these basic demands.” – Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.)
- “I was out in the hallways a week ago, and a reporter asked me a reasonable question. She said, do you think Democrats overplayed their hand in the negotiations over the DHS budget? Did you ask for too much, thus prompting the moment that we are in today as we do something unprecedented, debate using reconciliation to appropriate money for the ongoing expenses of the federal government? My answer was a confident no.” – Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
It’s not just Democrats’ words: By instigating two unprecedented government shutdowns (76-day partial and 43-day full), Democrats’ actions have harmed the lives of border security officers who keep the country’s borders safe. (The Wall Street Journal: Senators to Suspend Their Pay During Government Shutdowns – 5/14/26)

- “The shutdown’s uncertainty has taken a toll on ICE and CBP staffers, particularly professional and civilian support staff who missed paychecks in the early weeks of funding lapse, said an administration official.” (Politico: ‘Six months to catch up’: What the shutdown cost DHS – 5/2/26)

(The Wall Street Journal: Senators to Suspend Their Pay During Government Shutdowns – 5/14/26)

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