The White House is taking a victory lap after the number of migrants illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico dropped 40% since President Joe Biden's executive order, though the numbers remain high.
The Biden administration said daily crossings have fallen below, 2,400, the lowest level since the final days of the Trump administration.
Biden's executive order shut down asylum requests at the U.S.-Mexico border once the number of daily encounters hits 2,500 between ports of entry, with the border reopening once that number declines to 1,500.
Because crossings have not fallen below 1,500, asylum requests will continue to be denied.
"President Biden will keep leading, including by taking action to secure our border and by calling on Congressional Republicans to do their jobs and pass the bipartisan border security bill," White House senior deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said in a memo Wednesday morning obtained by Politico.
The Department of Homeland Security said it had overseen more than 100 repatriation flights that returned more than 24,000 people to more than 20 countries. The department said it has doubled the number of migrants removed directly from Border Patrol custody, according to Politico.
The Biden administration also said the number of people released pending their court date after crossing the border — known as "catch and release" — has also decreased by 65 percent since the president's announcement, Politico reported.
Under the suspension, which takes effect when daily arrests are above 2,500, anyone who expresses that fear or an intention to seek asylum is screened by a U.S. asylum officer but at a higher standard than currently used. If they pass the screening, they can pursue more limited forms of humanitarian protection, including the U.N. Convention Against Torture.
Groups like the ACLU have sued the administration over the order.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
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