DHS Reports Record Drop in Border Crossings Under Trump
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Right 100%
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What happened
The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection released preliminary Fiscal Year 2026 figures stating that Border Patrol apprehended 98,708 people who crossed the southwest border between ports of entry, a total DHS called the lowest in agency history. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said that figure was about 95 percent below an average of roughly 1.8 million southwest-border apprehensions per year that the department attributed to the Biden administration, and down from a peak of 249,740 in December 2023. DHS also said more than 3 million people it classified as illegally present had left the United States since President Donald Trump returned to office, including an estimated 2.2 million self-deportations and nearly 900,000 formal deportations, and that Border Patrol recorded no interior releases for 17 consecutive months. CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott said nationwide encounters in FY 2026 totaled 379,243, which DHS called the lowest on record. The White House and DHS additionally cited higher drug seizures through August, ICE arrests of more than 10,000 gang members and 2,100 known or suspected terrorists, an ICE workforce increase from 10,000 to 22,000 agents, and $84 billion in fines announced in July against 103,000 people.
Sourcing check · Fully on the record · 3 articles
3 of 3 articles cite a named source for the story. It was on the record from the first report.
What these terms mean and how they're counted
- On the record · names a source 3 of 3
- On the record means the article cites a source by name for the story's main claim: a person, or an institution speaking officially, such as a company statement or a named agency's spokesperson. The opposite is an unnamed source. The count is how many of the counted articles cite at least one such source; the names are everyone named across them, each once however the articles spell it. Here: White House, DHS, CBP, Markwayne Mullin, Rodney S. Scott and Department of Homeland Security
- Primary evidence · cites a document or data 2 of 3
- Primary evidence means the article cites a record you could check yourself: a court filing or ruling, a dataset or report, a recording or transcript, an official statement or press release, market data. A quote is not a document. The count is how many articles cite one. Here: preliminary Fiscal Year 2026 data, official statistics
- Credits another outlet 0 of 3
- The article says the story comes from another outlet's reporting (“first reported by Reuters”). Those articles relay the story; they are not independent confirmation. Here: Each article presents its own reporting.
- Unnamed sources 0 of 3
- The main claim is attributed to people who are not identified: “people familiar with the matter”, “officials said”. The count is how many articles do this.
- How it developed
- When the first report landed and whether it named anyone; when the first named source and the first document appeared. Here: First report Oct 15, 22:42 UTC by Breitbart, naming its source. First document 18 hours later, from OAN (preliminary Fiscal Year 2026 data).
- Not counted 0
- Opinion, analysis and video pieces, and articles too short to assess. Every count above is out of the counted articles. An article republished under a new headline is one article.
This is about who is cited, not whether the story is true. Each source below says what it names. How we count
BLINDSPOT.
Only right-leaning outlets are covering this story
— the other side's media is silent.
Omitted — what each side leaves out
Unpacked
Left-leaning coverage has not reported the DHS announcement at all, leaving those readers without the agency's claim that southwest-border crossings hit a historic low. Right-leaning coverage presents the new totals as restored control. Fiscal 2026 apprehensions between ports of entry fell below 99,000 in the Breitbart account. The same stretch is a 95 percent drop from the prior administration in OAN's telling. A reader of only the silent side never sees those DHS figures or the accompanying claim of the most secure border in history.
Right-leaning outlets split on which figure to put first. One Breitbart article leads with more than three million people leaving the country, counting self-deportations and a cash offer via a CBP app, while the second Breitbart piece and OAN lead with the fiscal-year arrest tally and the decline from a Biden-era peak.
Do uncounted got-aways still fit the claim of the lowest crossings in agency history?
Bottom line
If you read only left-leaning news you would not know DHS is posting 98,708 southwest-border apprehensions for fiscal 2026, a total circulating solely through Breitbart as the lowest in agency history.
The receipts — 6 facts one side's coverage lacks
- FY 2026 southwest-border apprehensions between ports of entry totaled 98,708, called the lowest level in agency history.
- Preliminary FY 2026 data shows a 95% drop in southwest-border apprehensions versus the Biden administration.
- Total nationwide encounters in FY 2026 were 379,243.
- Border Patrol recorded zero interior releases for 17 months and completed its first fiscal year with no releases.
- DHS said an estimated 2.2 million people self-deported after Trump returned to office.
- DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said CBP recorded its lowest numbers in American history.
The Right View
Breitbart and One America News Network presented the DHS release as proof that Trump delivered the most secure southwest border on record. They emphasized a 95–96 percent drop in Border Patrol apprehensions from Biden-era peaks, FY 2026 southwest-border arrests under 99,000 versus about 1.8 million a year previously, 17 months with zero interior releases, nationwide encounters of 379,243 versus about 2.7 million a year under Biden, and an estimated 2.2 million self-deportations. Coverage quoted Mullin and Scott saying strong enforcement works, repeated White House claims that ICE expanded its agent force and located more than 157,000 migrant children, and described a March 2025 CBP self-deportation app and large civil fines as cheaper alternatives to formal removal. Outlets framed the numbers as a kept campaign promise and a contrast with Democratic open-border policies.
Our Take (balanced)
The story is substantive as an official statistical announcement: it names DHS and CBP, gives specific FY 2026 totals (98,708 southwest-border apprehensions; 379,243 nationwide encounters), identifies Mullin and Scott, and asserts a 17-month stretch of zero interior releases—claims that can be checked against CBP’s public tables once final year-end data are posted. What remains estimated, not a person-level public roster, is the 2.2 million self-deportation figure and the 3 million overall-departure total. No left-leaning outlet has reported this. Watch for CBP’s final FY 2026 statistical release, any published methodology for counting self-deportations, and Inspector General or GAO review of the figures.
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