President Joe Biden is reportedly considering an executive order to temporarily shut down the southern border, according to a report from PBS on Tuesday, May 28. The action would be similar to a provision in the bipartisan immigration bill, which failed to pass in February 2024.
The proposed bill would have allowed the president to close the border once illegal crossings surpassed 4,000 migrants a day for a week. In addition, the bill would have begun automatic deportations once the daily average of border crossing surpassed 5,000 migrants. The executive order by President Biden could reportedly come as soon as June 2, one day after the Mexican elections.
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Just five months from the U.S. presidential election, Biden is under pressure from both sides of the aisle to get the ongoing border crisis under control. Moderate Democrats, some of whom are in tight races for reelection, want Biden to take action on immigration. Across the aisle, Republicans campaigned on the national security risk posed by what they see as untamed immigration and lax border enforcement.
However, border encounters dropped significantly over the past several months. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reports that border encounters in December stood at 301,980. In April, those numbers dropped to 179,725 encounters, according to CBP. Still, that is an average of around 5,990 encounters per day in April.
Election watchers warned Biden’s executive action could also alienate Latino voters who are crucial to his reelection bid. Some Hispanic voters said that they worry the order may set a new precedent for those seeking asylum in the United States, potentially making the process more restrictive.
Hispanic Caucus leadership met with President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris last week. Members raised concerns about Biden’s outreach to Latino voters. They urged the administration to consider other actions, like expanding work permits for immigrants already in the United States.
Meanwhile, Biden shifted to harder stance on immigration since polling has shown him facing a tough battle for reelection and illegal immigration ranking as top concern for U.S. voters.
