The number of unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. in 2022 (11.0 million, and the most recent year we have complete data for) was still below the peak of 12.2 million in 2007.
Now, migrant encounters (i.e., at the border) are at their highest levels in recorded U.S. history (249,735), but still not far removed from the previous peak in 2000 (220,063).
The fluctuations over time may have less to do with whatever border security/immigration policy an administration has in place at a particular time, and more to do with how other countries are performing relative to us (i.e., when things are shitty in other countries, we receive more immigrants, and vice versa). And like others in this thread have mentioned, any strain on the economy unauthorized immigrants exert is a drop in the bucket compared with other factors.
So, no, there is not a sudden “ridiculously high” wave of immigration recently. It is fear mongering and you are buying into it. This is also not to say unauthorized immigration isn’t an issue at all; it clearly has been trending upwards considerably since 2017. It is an issue, just not the behemoth that the GOP is making it out to be, and most certainly not the primary (or even secondary) cause for our economic woes.
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