Biden Can’t End the Migrant Crisis Because of the Economy

What’s happening: President Joe Biden apparently lacks incentive to address the crisis on the southern border due to the impact of migrants on recent economic and job growth, new data suggests.

The details: Between January 2023 and January 2024, more than half of labor market growth came from foreign-born workers. Research indicates that, during COVID lockdowns, foreign-born workers entered the workforce so quickly that they bridged the pandemic labor force gap.

• How? This was possible due to the sheer numbers of migrants who arrived in the U.S. in recent years.

• Important: These numbers do not make a distinction between foreign-born workers who are here legally and illegally, but data show that millions have entered without authorization during Biden’s time in office.

Why this matters: If Biden stopped the flow of incoming migrants, he would threaten the growth of his economy.

• Context: The number of people who attempted to enter the country at the southern border without prior authorization skyrocketed to more than 3 million last year. More than 80 percent were successful at gaining entry.

Double-edged sword: On one hand, the economy would not have recovered quickly without the influx of foreign-born workers. At the same time, many of those foreign-born workers came illegally at a time of bipartisan consensus around a crisis at the southern border.