KEY POINTS

  • GOP tweeted there is an increase in the number of illegal immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico Border
  • Biden supporters mocked the verbiage of the tweet, which appeared to praise the President
  • 239,416 illegal migrants were encountered at the border in May

The GOP issued a series of tweets Monday criticizing President Joe Biden and the current administration for various reasons, including the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, exactly a year ago; and the illegal immigration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. However, in a tweet issued about the latter, the GOP's choice of words opened a platform for Biden supporters to band together to commend his efforts, and mock the party while doing so.

"Breaking News: In July, 199,976 illegal immigrants were apprehended attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. #BidenBorderCrisis" the party's official Twitter account posted. After several hours, the word "apprehended" made it to the trending list as people explained how the tweet is more of a praise for Biden's admin.

"Apprehended? That's great! Biden's border patrol is getting the Job done!" read a tweet. Another wrote, "Apprehended. That means "Caught" as in STOPPED. Meanwhile, the head of your party stole top secret documents concerning our nuclear weapons. And he wants them back!" A third tweeted, "Great job Joe! Glad we are catching them!"

The GOP seems to have taken notice of their supposed goof-up and did a retake. They tweeted a Fox News article early Tuesday morning with the caption "700+ illegal immigrants cross into Texas in 1 day #BidenBorderCrisis"

The Republican minority on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee issued a 47-page report in June, titled "Biden's Border Crisis: Examining Policies that Encourage Illegal Migration." It stated that 234,088 migrants were seeking entry into the country in April, the highest-ever monthly total, much more than the monthly average of 171,840 people.

The record was broken in May with "239,416 encounters along the southwest land border in May, a 2 percent increase compared to April," according to a press release by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The report said most immigrants still came from Mexico and Northern Central American countries. But the number of immigrants from far away places including Cameroon, India, Bangladesh, China and Eritrea has seen an alleged significant spike since Biden's inauguration.

Republican party members have harshly criticized Biden admin's immigration policies. In April, House minority leader Kevin McCarthy arrived in Texas to lead 10 Republican lawmakers on a tour of the Southern border in the wake of the CDC's plans to repeal Title 42, a part of the Public Health Service Act of 1944 aimed at preventing the spread of communicable diseases in the country.

According to the law, the CDC director with the approval of the President, has the power to "prohibit. In whole or in part, the introduction of persons and property from such countries or places" to avert danger to US citizens.

"If President Biden wants to lift Title 42, he should come down here," McCarthy said, adding, "Before he makes this decision, he should look at the border agents in the eye and ask them what's the best decision to make." In a May ruling, Judge Robert Summerhays of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana paused the expiration of Title 42, which was scheduled to happen on May 23.

Last month, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tx., accused Kamala Harris and Biden of being responsible for "the worst plague of slavery in America since the Civil War." He posted a graphic video on Twitter alleging that thousands of migrant children were either working in gangs or being trafficked into sex trade in the U.S.

"President Biden doesn't want Americans to know that he has been ignoring the narco slave trade taking place along our southern border," he tweeted.

US Mexico Border
Troops are heading to the US-Mexico border as part of the newly announced “Operation Faithful Patriot” to stop the migrant caravan heading to the country. In this image: U.S. customs and border patrol agents and riot policemen take part in a border security drill at the US-Mexico international bridge, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Oct. 29, 2018. Getty Images/Herika Martinez