In a revealing moment on CNN, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) reluctantly acknowledged that President Donald Trump has effectively sealed the southern border—a striking admission after years of Democratic criticism of Trump’s immigration policies.
Appearing on CNN Newsroom with host Pamela Brown, Jeffries was pressed on the administration’s record-breaking drop in illegal crossings and migrant releases since Trump’s return to office in January. “Are you willing to give President Trump any credit for that?” Brown asked.
Jeffries initially dodged the question, pivoting to a lengthy answer about “comprehensive immigration reform” and accusing the Trump administration of targeting “law-abiding immigrant families.”
He even suggested, falsely, that “American citizens are being deported.”
But Brown pushed again, noting that illegal crossings had “gone down dramatically” since Trump reinstated strict enforcement measures.
“Can you give him credit for that?” she repeated.
Cornered, Jeffries finally conceded: “The border is secure. That’s a good thing. It’s happened on his watch. He wants to claim credit for it. Of course, he’ll get credit for that.”
The remark marked the first time a top House Democrat has publicly admitted that Trump succeeded where his predecessors — Republican and Democrat alike — had failed: restoring operational control over the nation’s southern border.
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According to Department of Homeland Security data, the U.S. Border Patrol has reported zero releases of illegal aliens into the U.S. interior for seven consecutive months, from May through November 2025.
That represents a complete reversal of Biden-era policy, during which roughly 85% of an average 185,000 monthly border encounters resulted in migrants being released into the country.
Under Trump’s reinstated directives, DHS ended “catch and release,” terminated the CBP One app — which had allowed migrants to schedule their own border appointments — and prioritized deportations.
Those steps have effectively closed loopholes that fueled the mass crossings under former President Joe Biden.
Former ICE Director Tom Homan, who served under six presidents, told Congress last year that Biden “was the first president in history to unsecure a border on purpose.”
Homan said he had worked for every president from Ronald Reagan through Donald Trump and that all had taken steps to strengthen border security — except Biden. “He was handed the most secure border in our nation’s history,” Homan said, “and dismantled it overnight.”
Homan also warned that Biden’s policies caused “the greatest national security crisis since 9/11,” citing record levels of fentanyl trafficking, human smuggling, and the entry of known or suspected terrorists.
During Biden’s presidency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 10 million illegal border crossings between January 2021 and September 2023, with an estimated 2 million additional “gotaways” who evaded capture.
Those totals exceed the combined populations of 41 states. Border Patrol apprehended 736 individuals on the terrorist watchlist in fiscal year 2023 alone — the highest number ever recorded.
Homan testified that more than 440,000 unaccompanied minors were smuggled into the country under Biden, with roughly 100,000 still unaccounted for.
“The systematic destruction of border security and the predictable consequences scare the hell out of me,” he told lawmakers. “It should scare you too.”
Trump’s reinstated border policies have reversed that collapse with remarkable speed. Within three months of taking office, DHS reported a 97% decline in unlawful crossings compared to the same period a year earlier. As of December 2025, Border Patrol recorded just 2,800 apprehensions nationwide for the month — the lowest figure since 1970.
Despite those numbers, Democrats have struggled to reconcile their rhetoric with reality. Jeffries’s admission — couched in criticism and deflection — underscored the awkward position of a party that once labeled Trump’s border policy “inhumane,” only to watch it succeed by every measurable standard. “The border is secure,” Jeffries said. “That’s a good thing.”
With illegal crossings halted, asylum loopholes closed, and deportations surging, Trump’s immigration record has become one of the sharpest contrasts between his administration and the one it replaced. For the first time in modern history, even his political opponents are running out of ways to deny it.
