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YUMA, AZ – Conditions were calm as U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R–ND) visited Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) to observe military testing operations and Department of Homeland Security activities along the U.S.–Mexico border.
Accompanied by Assistant Chief Michael Wisniewski and Division Chief William Schaeck of the U.S. Border Patrol Yuma Sector, Cramer evaluated the progress local agents have made in securing the region and enforcing U.S. immigration laws since the election of President Donald Trump.
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“Well, we just had a really great day at the Wellton Station and the vast area of Arizona that they’re responsible for here in the Yuma Sector for Customs and Border Protection,” said Cramer. “My takeaway after seeing the crossing, after going out to the desert, and after seeing the very impressive border wall is: what a difference leadership makes, what a difference a year makes. Other times when I have visited places like this, there were hundreds and in some cases thousands of people streaming across, turning themselves in, looking forward to the largess of taxpayer dollars that would be showered upon them once they were released into the nation. And now, in this day, I saw a grand total of zero people coming across the border, zero people giving themselves up to get shipped into the country, zero people breaking the law coming into our country illegally. Congratulations to the folks at Customs and Border Protection. Thank you to the people here in Arizona, at Wellton, at this station, and throughout the sector for their hospitality, and for their generosity of spirit, and for their important public service to the benefit of the safety of our country.”
During the tour, Cramer observed the work of local Border Patrol agents and federal partners, witnessing the impact of modernized technology, targeted enforcement, and strengthened policies on illegal activities along the southern border.
When Cramer visited the border previously, he witnessed the stream of illegal aliens invading the United States in the Rio Grande River Sector. At the time, DHS reported average monthly border encounters of nearly 160,000, with daily encounters reaching as high as 15,000.
In President Donald Trump’s first year alone, more than 2.5 million illegal immigrants have left the U.S. because of the administration’s crackdown on criminality. This includes an estimated 1.9 million self-deportations and more than 622,000 deportations.