In June, U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded 31,626 total encounters nationwide. Border Patrol logged 11,396 apprehensions, with 9,848 of those on the southwest border — 96% below the December 2023 peak under the Biden administration.

That's 14 consecutive months of zero releases at the border.

The numbers come from a DHS press release issued July 16, and they confirm what the enforcement-first crowd has been saying since January 2025: when you enforce the law, fewer people break it. CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott put it plainly. "As I have said many times, leadership and policy matter," Scott said. "When laws are enforced, fewer people will break the law."

The apprehension total represents a 94% decrease compared to the Biden administration and a 4% drop from May. Fiscal year to date, southwest border apprehensions are running 14% lower than the single-month average across fiscal years 1992 through 2024. Not lower than last year. Lower than the 32-year average.

But the border story isn't just about crossings going down. Drug seizures went up — significantly. Nationwide in June, combined seizures of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, and marijuana increased 49% compared to June 2024. Fiscal year to date, seizures are up 57%.

The fentanyl numbers alone are staggering. CBP seized 1,072 pounds of fentanyl in June, a 42% increase from May. Cocaine seizures hit 6,242 pounds, up 71% from May. Heroin seizures reached 68 pounds, up 49% from the prior month. More enforcement means more product intercepted before it reaches American streets.

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin framed the results in terms the administration's critics have spent two years trying to avoid. "Another month of historically low illegal border crossings demonstrates the success of President Trump's border security policies," Mullin said. "We went from the worst border crisis in history to 14 straight months of ZERO releases at the border. Our border is CLOSED to lawbreakers."

The counterargument from the opposition has been consistent: enforcement is cruel, walls don't work, and the only real solution is comprehensive immigration reform — which conveniently never arrives. Meanwhile, the actual data tells a different story. Apprehensions cratered. Drug interdiction surged. The people who said this couldn't be done are now arguing it shouldn't have been done.

Scott addressed the broader pattern. "Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Mullin, CBP is fully enforcing our immigration and border security laws," he said. "CBP has established meaningful border security resulting in sustained deterrence of illegal crossings. CBP is preventing dangerous criminal aliens and illicit narcotics from entering our communities, enhancing the safety of every American for generations to come."

The same press release noted CBP processed $330 billion in imports during June, identified $22.9 billion in duties, stopped 372 shipments for forced labor violations valued at $38 million, and seized 2 million counterfeit goods worth $1.4 billion. The agency isn't just guarding the border — it's generating revenue and enforcing trade law simultaneously.

For context, December 2023 was the high-water mark under Biden — the month the system effectively collapsed under the weight of mass releases and overwhelmed processing centers. The southwest border is now running 96% below that peak. That's not a marginal improvement. That's a different border.

Fourteen months. Zero releases. A 94% drop in crossings. Fentanyl seizures up 42% in a single month. The formula wasn't complicated. It just required someone willing to use it.