Senator James Lankford's Observations on US-Mexico Border Security in San Diego

Border Visit and Initial Observations

• 📍 Senator James Lankford visited the San Diego-Tijuana border area to assess the implementation of new border security policies.
• 💡 He observed that morale among CBP officers is up and chaos is down, contrasting with previous experiences where officers felt like "hotel check-in staff."
• 🎯 The focus has shifted from facilitating entry to enforcing the law, with officers eager to protect the nation.

Changes in Border Enforcement and Interdiction

• 🚧 Construction has begun to close a significant gap in the fence on the eastern side of San Diego, a previously identified vulnerability.
• 🚁 A Lakota helicopter identified an individual smuggling through the area, who was caught and will be deported, indicating increased interdiction capabilities.
• 🛣️ Highway checkpoints, previously suspended due to a focus on processing arrivals, have been reinstated to interdict drugs and contraband.

Declining Illegal Crossings and Shifting Smuggling Methods

• 📉 Illegal crossings have dramatically decreased from highs of 12,000 per day to around 200 per day.
• 🧒 For the first time, the unaccompanied minors room was empty, signifying a significant reduction in this category of arrivals.
• 🌊 With land border enforcement strengthened, cartels are now using jet skis and panga boats to smuggle people and drugs via the Pacific Ocean, leading to dangerous maritime incidents.

Addressing Cartel Operations and Smuggling

• 🚇 Cartels are actively digging tunnels under ports of entry to smuggle drugs and people, though these are being discovered and shut down.
• ⚠️ Three active criminal cartels operate just across the border, causing violence and pushing drugs into the U.S.
• 💰 Cartels prioritize profit over the safety of individuals they smuggle, using dangerous methods like panga boats that have resulted in fatalities.

Military and Coast Guard Roles

• 🛠️ Military engineering groups are reinforcing the border wall, and military personnel are assisting the Coast Guard in monitoring cameras at ports of entry.
• 🚢 The Coast Guard is facing increased pressure from cartel smuggling operations via the sea and requires additional resources.
• 📊 While land border crossings have decreased, maritime smuggling is on the rise, necessitating attention to all border areas.

Combating "Fake News" and Due Process

• 📰 Lankford addresses claims that the Trump administration is not honoring due process, citing a DHS report highlighting that aliens do go through a legal process.
• ⚖️ Individuals crossing illegally are arrested, informed of violating U.S. law, and immediately turned around and sent back to their countries, or prosecuted for repeat offenses.
• 🚫 Special interest aliens are no longer being released into the country by the thousands, but are being sent back to their countries.

Increased Drug Interdiction and Border Focus

• 📈 Customs officials report being able to catch significantly more drugs due to having more time to focus on interdiction, a direct result of lower illegal crossing numbers.
• ✅ The focus on illegal activity at the border is making a difference, allowing law enforcement to concentrate on the most serious threats entering the country.