Southern border migrant surge: December encounters reach most in more than two decades as mayors call for action

Eagle Pass, Texas
CNN
 — 

A new surge of migrants at the US-Mexico border is overwhelming already-stretched resources and prompting urgent talks with Mexican officials as December border crossings reached a record monthly high.

Border authorities encountered more than 225,000 migrants along the US-Mexico border this month, marking the highest monthly total recorded since 2000, according to preliminary Homeland Security statistics shared with CNN. Over the course of the month, authorities dealt with more than 10,000 migrants crossing daily until more recently, when the numbers began to drop.

Even US cities far from the Mexican border are reaching a breaking point trying to manage the influx of migrants, several mayors told CNN on Friday.

Since last year, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has bused more than 92,000 migrants to cities across the country, according to his office. Those cities include Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York City and Washington, DC – all of which are led by Democratic mayors.

“The international crisis that we are experiencing right now is being subsidized by local economies,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson told “CNN This Morning” Friday.

“That is not sustainable, and that’s why we need Congress to actually have appropriations to make sure that what refugees from Ukraine receive, we have to ask … why aren’t those same support services being provided for individuals who are coming from the continent of Africa and Central and South America?”

The shelter system for migrants in Chicago has reached capacity, the mayor said. And without a coordinated solution, the migrant crisis “is going to crush local economies,” Johnson said.

Denver is expected to spend about 10% of its entire city budget on migrant shelter and aid next year, Mayor Mike Johnston said.

New York City has received more than 161,000 migrants since 2022, and the influx will likely cost an estimated $12 billion over three years, Mayor Eric Adams said.

“This national crisis is impacting – and it has the potential to destabilize – the financial obligations that we have in our cities,” Adams said.

He said New York City might reach a “breaking point,” which could include forced cutbacks to school programs, the police department, trash pickup and resources for senior citizens.

“Every agency and delivery of service in my city is going to be drastically impacted by the actions of picking up the tab of $5 billion this fiscal year, $12 billion of three years,” Adams said.

Abbott’s office has defended Texas’ practice of busing migrants to other states, saying “the busing mission is providing much-needed relief to our overwhelmed border communities.”

As for the federal government, the Biden administration has acknowledged some mayors’ requests to help alleviate the shelter crisis and streamline work authorization for eligible noncitizens.

“President Biden is committed to addressing this problem, that’s why he submitted a supplemental funding request to Congress which includes additional resources to secure the border with more law enforcement, more grant funding for jurisdictions hosting migrants, and funding to accelerate the processing of work permits for eligible noncitizens,” a White House spokesperson said.

The Department of Justice has threatened to sue Texas over its new immigration law in a letter Thursday, according to a copy of the letter obtained by CNN. The threat marks the latest escalation between President Joe Biden and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott over the handling of the US-Mexico border.

Earlier this month, Abbott signed Senate Bill 4 into law, giving local law enforcement the power to arrest migrants and empowering judges to remove migrants from the US. The measure is expected to take effect in March.

The White House slammed the new law, calling it “incredibly extreme.”

In a letter to Abbott, the DOJ argued the measure is “preempted and violates the US Constitution” and risks interfering with the federal government’s ability to enforce immigration law.

“Accordingly, the United States intends to file suit to enjoin the enforcement of SB 4 unless Texas agrees to refrain from enforcing the law,” the letter, signed by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton, states. “The United States is committed to both securing the border and ensuring the processing of noncitizens consistent with the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). SB 4 is contrary to these goals.”

Abbott slammed the Justice Department’s letter later Thursday and accused President Joe Biden of “destroying America.”

“The Biden Admin. not only refuses to enforce current U.S. immigration laws, they now want to stop Texas from enforcing laws against illegal immigration,” Abbott said in a post on X. “I’ve never seen such hostility to the rule of law in America.”

Thursday’s legal threat comes after the Justice Department sued Texas over its use of floating barriers in the Rio Grande. The threat also comes after Texas sued the Biden administration over allegations federal agents were cutting razor wire in Eagle Pass put up by Abbott’s border security initiative. Both lawsuits are still making their way through the courts.

Border authorities apprehended more than 7,000 migrants along the US-Mexico border on Wednesday, according to a Homeland Security official.

Wednesday’s arrests are still lower than earlier this month – when daily apprehensions surpassed 10,000 – and reflects some relief for border authorities. There has been a “pretty significant reduction in border crossings” in recent days, a senior administration official said Wednesday.

In early December, the seven-day average of daily encounters hovered around 9,600 – a jump from late November, when the average stood at 6,800.

US and Mexican officials described high-level talks Wednesday as “productive” as Mexico moves to double down on immigration enforcement and crack down on human smugglers.

About 2,000 border arrests Wednesday took place in the Del Rio Sector, according to a law enforcement source.

The same source said total apprehensions Monday were about 2,000, a drop from the 3,000 daily average number of migrant apprehensions last week.

The Del Rio Sector includes Eagle Pass, Texas, which had thousands of migrants waiting outside to be transported for immigration processing last week.

Mexican and US officials will meet in Washington next month to discuss curbing the influx of migrants into the US, according to the US National Security Council.

The visit will come after this week’s high-level US delegation visit to Mexico City, which included Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

A National Security Council spokesperson called the trip “productive” and said Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador “has taken significant new enforcement actions” when it comes to migration.

Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alicia Barcena told reporters the talks also covered the importance of the economic relationship between the US and Mexico, as well as the root causes of migration, such as poverty, inequality, violence and family reunification, according to a recording provided to CNN by Mexico’s foreign ministry.

US officials said Mexico shared plans to crack down on migrant smugglers, which is contributing to the recent increase at the border.

Mexico has also taken a leadership role on “conducting humane border management, including repatriations,” a US senior administration official said, and more repatriations were conducted this year than ever before.

The US has historically leaned on Mexico to act as a buffer and stem the flow of migrants journeying to the US southern border. But Mexico, like the US, faces similar difficulties as the number of migrants crossing into its country overwhelms its limited resources.

Many migrants coming from the Mexican side of the border are from Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, Cuba and Haiti.

Immigration has been a political vulnerability for Biden, who has faced fierce criticism from Republicans and even some members of his own party for the situation at the US-Mexico border.

US officials acknowledge more work needs to be done by both countries.

“We continue to address the root causes and build on legal pathways that incentivize orderly migration and enforcement of our laws,” a National Security Council official said.

The January meetings will “assess progress and decide what more can be done,” the National Security Council official said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s Kevin Liptak and Antoine Sanfuentes contributed to this report.