WASHINGTON (AP) — The Homeland Security Department says arrests for illegal border crossings dropped more than 40% during the three weeks that asylum processing has been suspended. The department said Wednesday that Border Patrol’s average daily arrests over a 7-day period have fallen below 2,400 from before President Joe Biden’s proclamation took effect June 5. That’s still above the 1,500-mark needed to resume asylum processing, but Homeland Security says it marks the lowest number since Jan. 17, 2021. Last week, Biden said border arrests had fallen 25% since his order took effect, indicating they have decreased much more even since then.
