This week, President Donald J. Trump marked a milestone in his second-term border security effort by presenting the newly established Mexican Border Defense Medal to U.S. service members. The honor recognizes those who have played a crucial role in restoring order to America’s southern border — a mission many supporters see as long overdue.
Since returning to office, President Trump has taken a hardline, hands-on approach to reversing policies he argues sparked an historic border crisis under the Biden Administration. Republicans have praised the administration for doing what they believe Washington failed to do for years: secure the border, enforce the law, and put American communities first.
A Border Reclaimed
The administration reports a sweeping transformation along the southern border. According to officials:
- Over 2.5 million illegal aliens have been removed from the country.
- For seven consecutive months, zero illegal border entrants have been released into the U.S. interior — a stark contrast with past “catch-and-release” practices.
- Illegal crossings have fallen to their lowest levels since 1970, putting the nation on pace for net negative migration for the first time in fifty years.
- Targeted operations in major “sanctuary cities” — from Los Angeles and Chicago to Washington, D.C., and Boston — have removed tens of thousands of criminal aliens from city streets.
- As fentanyl smuggling routes are disrupted, American drug-related deaths have declined each month.
- More than 62,000 migrant children have been located and rescued from trafficking networks after being lost in the system under the previous administration.
Taken together, the numbers describe a border environment transformed not just on paper, but in lived reality for communities across the country.
Legislative and Policy Wins
Republicans are also cheering several major policy overhauls:
- The Laken Riley Act, now law, requires the detention of illegal aliens charged with violent crimes.
- The administration reinstated bedrock Trump-era immigration measures on Day One — including “Remain in Mexico,” the end of catch-and-release, renewed border wall construction, and the shutdown of the CBP One scheduling app.
- The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program was suspended pending new vetting standards.
- Access to taxpayer-funded benefits for illegal immigrants was terminated.
- A sweeping redesign of background checks now aims to ensure anti-American extremist ideologies don’t gain a foothold through immigration channels.
- Trump formally designated several notorious transnational gangs and cartels — including MS-13, Jalisco New Generation Cartel, and the Sinaloa Cartel — as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
Supporters say these policies have brought a level of deterrence and enforcement unseen in decades.
Economic and Social Shifts
The administration argues that these immigration changes are already shaping the U.S. labor market for the better:
- Between January and September, 2.57 million native-born Americans gained employment, while foreign-born employment declined by just over one million.
- New foreign student enrollment in U.S. universities dropped 17% year-over-year, a shift the administration frames as giving American students and workers more opportunities.
A Long-Term Security Blueprint
Perhaps the administration’s most ambitious move is Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, described as the largest single investment in border security in U.S. history. The bill’s backers say it will lock in recent gains and protect the southern border for decades.
Why This Moment Matters
Awarding the Mexican Border Defense Medal isn’t just ceremonial — it signals the administration’s belief that the country has turned a corner. After years of headlines about record-breaking crossings, strained cities, fentanyl deaths, and overwhelmed border agents, Trump and his supporters argue that the U.S. is finally reasserting control of its sovereignty.
