The Federal Government’s Own Statistics Are Undermining Biden’s Arguments

This is a big week for the Biden administration. Tomorrow, the Customs and Border Protection will update the agency’s official data on April 2021 border enforcement actions. We don’t know what they will be, but CNN reported May 3, “throughout April, Customs and Border Protection has encountered an average of just under 6,000 people daily at the southern border, according to a Department of Homeland Security official, which is in line with the March average of around 5,560 people daily… During the first three weeks of April, around 122,000 people were encountered by US border authorities on the southwest border, another signal that the month will likely be similar to March, according to preliminary data obtained by CNN.”

On Wednesday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will update the numbers on the Consumer Price Index; last month, the CPI had the biggest jump in almost a decade, an ominous indicator that serious inflation could be returning to American economic life. As our Andrew Stuttaford wrote a few days ago, “there is a very good chance that people and markets will not be inclined to believe that the jump in inflation is temporary and will adjust their behavior accordingly, turning the temporary into something more sustained.”

About the Author

Jim Geraghty

Jim Geraghty is the senior political correspondent of National Review.

This is a big week for the Biden administration. Tomorrow, the Customs and Border Protection will update the agency’s official data on April 2021 border enforcement actions. We don’t know what they will be, but CNN reported May 3, “throughout April, Customs and Border Protection has encountered an average of just under 6,000 people daily at the southern border, according to a Department of Homeland Security official, which is in line with the March average of around 5,560 people daily… During the first three weeks of April, around 122,000 people were encountered by US border authorities on the southwest border, another signal that the month will likely be similar to March, according to preliminary data obtained by CNN.”

On Wednesday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will update the numbers on the Consumer Price Index; last month, the CPI had the biggest jump in almost a decade, an ominous indicator that serious inflation could be returning to American economic life. As our Andrew Stuttaford wrote a few days ago, “there is a very good chance that people and markets will not be inclined to believe that the jump in inflation is temporary and will adjust their behavior accordingly, turning the temporary into something more sustained.”