Leaving left-wing pundits and open-border zealots in a full-on panic about what comes next for illegal immigration in this country, a staggering 60% of Americans now back President Donald Trump’s border crackdown.
At a Glance
- Harvard CAPS/Harris poll finds 60% of voters support Trump’s effort to close the southern border.
- Border encounters have plummeted to historic lows since Trump resumed office in 2025.
- Military deployments and new executive orders have transformed U.S. border security operations.
- Public frustration with Biden-era immigration policies is fueling bipartisan backing for stricter enforcement.
Trump’s Immigration Crackdown Gets Roaring Approval as Border Encounters Collapse
President Trump wasted no time after his return to the Oval Office. On day one, he signed a stack of executive orders aimed squarely at the chaos that had been unleashed on the southern border over the previous four years.
The result? Encounters at the border, which had soared under Biden’s so-called “humane” policies, have nosedived to the lowest monthly total in three years. Customs & Border Patrol data shows just 11,017 encounters in March 2025, compared to a staggering 189,359 in March 2024.
That’s not just a policy shift—that’s what border security actually looks like when Washington finally gets serious about American sovereignty.
Military presence at the border is no longer a talking point—it’s reality. Trump’s administration declared a national emergency, issued a raft of new executive orders, and deployed over 10,000 service members to the southern border.
The Department of Defense now has jurisdiction over key border lands, and the resumption—no, expansion—of border wall construction is well underway. In March alone, spending on military border functions topped $376 million.
The White House has made it clear: the days of cartel-controlled crossings and “catch and release” are over. Instead, we’re seeing new National Defense Areas, expanded surveillance, and a visible, unapologetic show of force that is actually deterring illegal entry.
Polls Reveal Furious Public Backlash Against Biden-Era “Open Borders”
The American people have had enough. The July 2025 Harvard CAPS/Harris poll makes it painfully clear that support for strict border policies is not just a “Republican base” phenomenon. Sixty percent of voters back Trump’s move to close the border, and a full 75%—across party lines—want illegal immigrants with criminal records deported immediately.
Among Republicans, that number soars to 89%. Even 55% of Independents are on board. Meanwhile, 67% of voters say the border was “open” under Biden, and 69% believe that was no accident but a deliberate policy choice. The message to Washington: Americans are done subsidizing chaos, crime, and government overreach that puts citizens last.
Support for Trump’s approach isn’t limited to border closures. The data reveals a bipartisan consensus on getting violent criminals and repeat offenders out of the country, and strong support for deploying the National Guard to restore order.
As Mark Penn, co-director of the Harvard poll, put it, Trump’s approval is highest “on immigration and returning America to its values.” If only the D.C. elite had been listening for the last decade, we might not have had to endure the lawlessness that’s now being rolled back, brick by brick and mile by mile.
Trump’s New Policies: Border Security That Actually Works
Here’s what’s actually happening on the ground. The administration has doubled down on physical barriers, including the controversial but highly effective floating barriers in the Rio Grande.
The military is not only patrolling the border but also controlling key zones and utilizing state-of-the-art surveillance. There’s even talk of a naval blockade to intercept drug smugglers before they reach U.S. soil, taking the fight to international waters.
Ideological screening is back, meaning that radical activists and Marxist agitators can expect to be turned away at the gate, not welcomed with open arms and a taxpayer-funded benefits package.
Critics are howling about “human rights” and “due process,” but the law-abiding majority sees results. Border crossings have collapsed by 95% since last year. Cartels, traffickers, and freeloaders are getting the message: America’s borders are not open for business.
And the data proves it—apprehensions and illegal entries have fallen off a cliff since Trump’s policies kicked in. For the first time in years, Border Patrol agents have been empowered to do their jobs, and the results are immediate and undeniable.
The Political and Economic Fallout: What’s Next?
The fight is far from over. Democrats in Congress are already threatening legal challenges and branding the new policies as “extreme.” Advocacy groups are lining up lawsuits, and the usual suspects in the media are predicting economic doom.
Yet, the sectors that depend on illegal labor—agriculture, construction, and low-wage service jobs—are now being forced to adapt.
Employers who have relied on a steady stream of illegal workers are facing a new reality: follow the law, pay fair wages, or find themselves on the wrong side of a crackdown that voters demanded at the ballot box.
For border communities, the impact is mixed. There’s increased law enforcement and less uncertainty about who’s coming across the border. For families who followed the law, paid their dues, and waited their turn, the restoration of order is long overdue.
For the millions who’ve felt sidelined and ignored by a ruling class more interested in virtue signaling than protecting its own citizens, the Trump administration’s hard-nosed approach is a breath of fresh air—one backed by the overwhelming majority of Americans, if the polling is to be believed.
