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171,000 Migrants in March: Poll Shows Most Americans Unhappy with Biden Border Crisis

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New polling suggests most Americans are not happy with President Biden's handling of the border crisis and immigration. 

This news comes as U.S. Border Patrol agents struggle to keep up with the skyrocketing number of illegal crossings. 

Given what they see from their front-row seat, many in the Rio Grande Valley told CBN News they have no confidence the Biden administration can stop this humanitarian and national security crisis that is already out of control. 

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"It's beyond a border crisis," said Mayra Flores, a former Democrat in Texas' 34th Congressional District, now running for Congress on the Republican ticket.  

"We're seeing child trafficking. We're seeing that the cartel and the smugglers are making billions. This is the same organization that is terrorizing Mexico. This does not benefit anyone," she said. 

Flores believes many south Texas Republican and Democrat voters are furious about it. 

A CBN News team recently spent more than a week in the Rio Grande Valley and got a close-up glimpse of what's troubling so many there. 

Waves of migrants are dropped on U.S. soil each day by the smugglers and drug cartels for which they pay thousands of dollars for what the migrants believe is their only chance of opportunity and survival. 

The latest data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows 171,000 migrants showed up in March. That number is five times more than just a year ago. 

Meanwhile, migrants continue to arrive at the southern border. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki again downplayed the situation when she was asked about the possibility of terrorists sneaking into the country. 

"Encounters of known and suspected terrorists are very uncommon," Psaki said.

READ: U.S. Border Patrol Arrest Two Yemeni Men on Terror Watch List Trying to Cross Border from Mexico

As the administration plays defense, a new Associated Press/NORC poll shows 40 percent of Americans disapprove of Biden's response, while just 24 percent approve. More than a third are undecided. 

Detention facilities continue to overflow. In Donna, Texas, the numbers reportedly expanded six-fold in a matter of days. 

"Every facility we have along the southwest border is over capacity right now," said Deputy Chief Raul Ortiz. 

Other critics, like Raul Cruz who live along the river, blame President Biden for rolling back the Trump administration's immigration policies he insists were working. 

"They are getting processed and then released. It's not due to Border Patrol's job. It's due to the new Biden administration's policy, the 100 day no deportation that's going on," said Cruz. 

Officials say it takes about three hours to do the paperwork for each migrant who comes through. As agents are pushed to quickly process it all, record numbers are being released without a court date, which would require them to face a judge.

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About The Author

Tara
Mergener

Tara Mergener is an award-winning journalist and expert storyteller who spent the majority of her career as a correspondent in Washington, D.C. She worked at CBS Newspath for many years, reporting for all CBS platforms, including CBS News and CBS affiliates throughout the nation. Tara also reported at CNN, Hearst’s Washington, D.C. Bureau, and was a contributor on Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren. Tara has won dozens of awards for her investigative and political reporting, including Headliner Foundation’s Best Reporter in Texas, multiple Edward R. Murrow awards, Texas Associated Press