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A fictional, fanciful sign depicts the results of voter suppression through the unfair, partisan manipulation of district lines (gerrymandering).

The worst congressional gerrymanders of the 2020s

The Panama Canal has value to American business—but it has more value to China

The Panama Canal has value to American business—but it has more value to China

Project 2025: Part II

Project 2025: Part II

Students raising their hands in a classroom

Project 2025: Department of Education

Redistricting

Redistricting

Just words, or did Trump mean it: "He who saves his country violates no Law."

Just words, or did Trump mean it: "He who saves his country violates no Law."

Have 25 million undocumented immigrants entered the U.S. and stayed during the Biden-Harris administration?

Peopel crossing the border at night

Migrants cross into the United States from Mexico through an abandoned railroad on June 28, in Jacumba Hot Springs, Calif.

Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images
Tom Kertscher, Wisconsin Watch
By Tom Kertscher, Wisconsin WatchSep 09, 2024
Tom Kertscher, Wisconsin Watch
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This fact brief was originally published by Wisconsin Watch. Read the original here. Fact briefs are published by newsrooms in the Gigafact network, and republished by The Fulcrum. Visit Gigafact to learn more.

Have 25 million undocumented immigrants entered the U.S. and stayed during the Biden-Harris administration?

No.

Authorities estimate the number of undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. during the Biden-Harris administration and remained at far less than the 25 million that Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance claimed.

Vance said Aug. 28, 2024, in De Pere, Wis.:

"Kamala Harris let in 25 million illegal aliens ... the 25 million people who are here in this country illegally."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 10 million migrant encounters — one person one or more times — from February 2021 through July 2024.

However, millions were turned away, returned or deported.

The nonprofit Migration Policy Institute estimates there were 6 million entries between January 2021 and April 2024.

Customs and Border Protection also estimated about 2 million “got-aways” — border crossers who evaded authorities — 385,707 in 2021, 737,244 in 2022, and 694,685 in 2023.

Vance's spokesperson cited conservative media reports, including one saying there may have been 1 million got-aways in one year.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

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Sources

WLUK-TV FOX 11 JD Vance rallies voters in Wisconsin

Customs and Border Protection Nationwide Encounters

News release Chairman Green for RealClearPolitics: No, Biden and Harris’ Border Crisis Is Not Over

USA Today No, 51M 'illegals' have not entered US under Biden, Harris | Fact check

PolitiFact There aren’t 20 million to 30 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally, as Sen. Marco Rubio claimed

Google Docs Migration Policy Institute Aug. 29, 2024

Department of Homeland Security Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Justification

Department of Homeland Security Fiscal Year 2024 Congressional Justification

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Pentagon Reportedly Pauses Plan for Mass Civilian Layoffs
Governance & Legislation

Pentagon Reportedly Pauses Plan for Mass Civilian Layoffs

Border Patrol in Texas
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Tracking Mass Deportation by the Numbers, Not Smoke and Mirrors

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Washington County’s Plan to Revive The American Dream

Cut outs of a family and a home.

Getty Images, Bernie_photo

Washington County’s Plan to Revive The American Dream

Resist the urge to publish the American Dream’s obituary. It’s alive, though unwell. It’s no secret that the hallmarks of the dream have become unreachable for many Americans. Homeownership seems impossible in communities. Marriage rates have dropped. Families have shrunk. Even lifespans are on the decline. The dream’s vital signs are cause for immense concern. There are signs of life—Washington County, Wisconsin is testing two remedies that might just revive the dream there and across the country.

Just north of Milwaukee, Washington County is—in many ways—a surprising source of hope. It faces no shortage of challenges. As County officials will tell you, they’re struggling to hold on to their community members. Too few homes, too few jobs, and too few community connections led many residents to look for another place to call home. County Executive Josh Schoemann, however, refused to let the dream die in his community. He and others joined together to brainstorm novel cures for the disease eating away at prosperity.

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Congress Bill Spotlight: Make Greenland Great Again Act

Aappilattoq fishing village, South Greenland.

Getty Images, Posnov

Congress Bill Spotlight: Make Greenland Great Again Act

The Fulcrum introduces Congress Bill Spotlight, a weekly report by Jesse Rifkin, focusing on the noteworthy legislation of the thousands introduced in Congress. Rifkin has written about Congress for years, and now he's dissecting the most interesting bills you need to know about, but that often don't get the right news coverage.

President Donald Trump wants the U.S. to control Greenland. A bill in Congress could help.

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Connecticut lawmakers consider new bill to ban female genital mutilation/cutting

Every U.S. state needs a comprehensive law against female genital mutilation and cutting.

U.S. End FGM/C Network and Equality Now

Connecticut lawmakers consider new bill to ban female genital mutilation/cutting

Optimism is growing that a new Bill in Connecticut will lead to the introduction of a statewide ban against female genital mutilation/ cutting (FGM/C). Thousands of women and girls across the state have undergone or are at risk of this harmful practice. Despite this, Connecticut remains one of just nine U.S. states that still lack state-level legal protections—something advocates hope this legislation will finally change.

Survivors and others from impacted communities, alongside women’s rights advocates and civil society organizations - including the U.S. Network to End FGM/C, Sahiyo, Equality Now, and the Connecticut General Assembly’s Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity, and Opportunity - have long called for state legislation against FGM/C in Connecticut, citing how a law would help those at risk and their families resist cultural and social pressures to continue the practice.

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Anti-LGBTQ+ policies harm the health of not only LGBTQ+ people, but all Americans

Courts across the nation are debating whether LGBTQ+ people should be protected from discrimination.

Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Anti-LGBTQ+ policies harm the health of not only LGBTQ+ people, but all Americans

In 2024, state legislatures introduced an all-time record of 533 bills targeting LGBTQ+ populations. These policies create a patchwork of legal landscapes that vary widely between and within states, affecting aspects of everyday life ranging from how kids learn and play to where adults live and work.

All of these policies have implications for the health of not only LGBTQ+ people but also the general public.

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