Many missteps by the Biden–Harris administration and Democrats eased the path to victory for Donald Trump and the GOP, but Trump may be best known for embracing immigration and border control as his signature issues. His administration acted quickly to round up undocumented migrants and to publicize its activities, so you'd expect voters to be delighted. But surveys find declining concern about the border, lower support for deportations, and growing favorability for increased immigration. What gives? If you look at the data, it's clear that most Americans like immigration and favor order at the border—not cruel overreaction.
Last year, it was obvious that immigration worries boosted Trump's candidacy. In October, a majority of respondents told YouGov pollsters that they trusted the GOP candidate to do a better job on immigration than then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate. The most important immigration concern for respondents—at 51 percent—was "border enforcement."
In office, the Trump administration stepped up border controls. It militarized sections of the border, toughened screening of would-be migrants, increased deportations, and staged high-profile Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids to arrest undocumented immigrants. Unauthorized border crossings are now down "to a level not seen in at least 25 years" according to CBS News.
