On the US-Mexico border, the records of Trump and Harris reflect the national mood of less immigration, not more

Migrants at a shelter in Tijuana, Mexico, watch the first presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump on Sept. 10, 2024. Carlos Moreno/NurPhoto/Getty Image by William McCorkle, College of Charleston In late July 2024, Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris released a campaign ad about the U.S.-Mexico border that resembled something out of the Republican playbook. In the ad, Harris said as president she would increase Border Patrol agents, stop human traffickers and prosecute transnational gangs – some of the very things that Republican contender Donald Trump has also promised to do if elected. Considered by her campaign strategists to be a good political move, Harris’ shift to the right reflects the more anti-immigrant direction the U.S. population has taken over the past few years. According to a July 2024 Gallup Poll, 55% of Americans wanted increased limits on immigration, marking the first time in nearly two decades that a majority of Americans supported such curbs. These anti-immigrant attitudes are partially due to exaggerated claims from conservative politicians and right-wing pundits that management of the U.S.-Mexico border is a disaster and the government is endangering public safety by allowing violent criminals to cross into the U.S. Worse, during the presidential...