The vast majority of American voters consider the increasing number of migrants arriving at the southern border a “crisis,” according to a recent poll.
A Harvard CAPS-Harris poll shared with The Hill on Monday found that 80% of respondents said the current situation at the border is “a crisis that needs to be addressed immediately,” while just 20% said it was “something that can be dealt with by the immigration system we have currently.”
A majority of voters also said unaccompanied minors who crossed the southern border were being kept in humane conditions. Among those polled, 54% of respondents said detained migrant children have been treated humanely, though 46% said they have been treated inhumanely.
NEW POLL: Majority of voters say surge at border is a crisis https://t.co/C0iDCByDRr pic.twitter.com/HEULalkbde
— The Hill (@thehill) May 3, 2021
The Harvard CAPS-Harris poll surveyed 1,872 registered voters between April 27-29, according to The Hill.
The number of migrants encountered at the southern border has surged during the Biden administration, increasing from 12,000 migrants in January to 170,000 in March, according to Customs and Border Protection. At least 18,000 unaccompanied minors were encountered in March. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Migrants Crossing The Rio Grande Valley All Say The Same Things)
National Border Patrol Council spokesman Chris Cabrera told the Daily Caller News Foundation in late March that temporary migration detention facilities have become overcrowded and lack the facilities to hold the growing number of migrants. Videos of the facilities showed migrants sleeping on floor mats and shelves stocked with clothing and food.
The Biden administration has faced scrutiny for not acknowledging the border situation as a “crisis.” President Joe Biden said in an interview with NBC News host Craig Melvin last week that his administration has “gotten control” of the situation.
WATCH: Craig Melvin Repeatedly Tries and Fails to Get President Joe Biden to Call Border Situation ‘A Crisis’ https://t.co/vpjReGDsZm via @mediaite pic.twitter.com/ZxOHlVyvD0
— Tommy moderna-vaX-Topher (@tommyxtopher) April 30, 2021
Biden also blamed former President Donald Trump during the interview, stating that the “failure to have a real transition” led immigration agencies to be “understaffed considerably” when he took office in January.