In a recent address to Congress, President Donald Trump highlighted initiatives from his early administration but made several claims that were fueled by misinformation. For instance, he exaggerated the current rates of illegal border crossings, which historical data disproves. He also inflated figures regarding the number of people entering the US illegally during Joe Biden's administration. Despite using these statistics to underscore his immigration stance, reports show a significant discrepancy in his claims, revealing a lack of evidence supporting his narratives about criminals crossing the border.
However, many of his comments included false and misleading information. Here is a closer look at a few of his claims:
The facts: Mr Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Saturday that Border Patrol apprehended 8,326 people on the US-Mexico border last month. But US government data show that Border Patrol routinely averaged below that number in the 1960s.
The facts: That figure, which Mr Trump cites regularly, is highly inflated. US Customs and Border Protection reported more than 10.8 million arrests for illegal crossings from Mexico from January 2021 through December 2024.
There is no evidence other countries are sending their criminals or people with mental illness across the border, despite this frequent line from Mr Trump.
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