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The California Report

A Trip To The Border As Election Day Looms

Keith Mizuguchi
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JACUMBA HOT SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 22: From an aerial view U.S. Border Patrol agents gather a group of Colombian asylum seekers after they crossed over from Mexico on September 22, 2024 near Jacumba Hot Springs, California. Immigrant border crossings remain low months after the Biden Administration's executive order banning most asylum claims at the southern border. The issues of asylum and illegal immigration remain motivating topics for voters ahead of the upcoming U.S. election.  (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

Here are the morning’s top stories on Thursday, October 24, 2024…

  • In the final weeks of the presidential campaign, migration at the U.S.-Mexico border remains a heated topic. Former President Donald Trump calls it an “invasion.” And Vice President Kamala Harris is vowing tougher enforcement.  So what is actually happening at the border? 
  • The editorials editor of the Los Angeles Times has resigned after the newspaper’s owner, Patrick Soon-Shiong, blocked the editorials team’s plan to endorse Kamala Harris in this year’s presidential election.

What’s Really Happening At The US-Mexico Border?

Immigration remains one of the biggest issues for many voters in the presidential election. Former President Donald Trump has called for mass deportations, describing migration at the U.S.-Mexico border as an “invasion.” Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris has also vowed tougher enforcement at the border, outlining a plan to crack down further on asylum claims and extend restrictions put in place by President Biden.

But what’s the situation at the border actually like? The San Diego sector is the busiest stretch of the border right now. But illegal crossings are down dramatically. “Just in the last two months this region has seen an approximate 50% decline in illegal entries. Nationwide numbers have declined as well,” said Mike Scappechio with Customs and Border Protection.

Nationally, Border Patrol encounters were at a record high in December. Today, they’re less than a quarter of that number. “Partnerships with Mexico have enhanced. Policies have changed,” Scappechio said. Since the beginning of the year, Mexico has cracked down on migrants heading for the U.S. border. And in June, President Joe Biden issued an executive order, barring access to the asylum process for those who enter illegally when crossings are high. The administration has also created a process for migrants to come lawfully. They make an appointment using a smartphone app called CBP One, get vetted at a port of entry and then enter with a temporary humanitarian parole. But that app has had issues.

LA Times Editor Resigns After Paper’s Owner Blocks Presidential Endorsement 

The editorials editor of the Los Angeles Times has resigned after the newspaper’s owner, Patrick Soon-Shiong, blocked the editorials team’s plan to endorse Kamala Harris in this year’s presidential election.

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“In dangerous times honest people need to stand up. This is how I am standing up” Mariel Garza told the Columbia Journalism Review, explaining her resignation from the paper.

Instead of an endorsement, Soon-Shiong says he wanted the L.A. Times editorial page to do a factual analysis of the policy proposals of Harris and Donald Trump. The endorsement dispute follows other conflicts over Soon-Shiong’s influence over editorial decisions and coverage choices by Times editors and reporters.

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