Yuma Mayor Douglas Nicholls confirmed that illegal crossings near his city have plummeted since President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on the southern border.
“For the last four days—very specifically in the last four days—we haven’t had any transfers from the San Diego or Tucson sector, which had been happening daily or near daily for the last several months,” Nicholls told The Epoch Times.
Nicholls attributed the decline to Trump’s rapid deportation efforts, which have forced many illegal immigrants to reconsider their journey. “Quite a few of them are actually being repatriated to their home countries,” he said, adding that many don’t want to spend thousands of dollars only to be sent back.
Cartels and Human Smuggling Continue to Plague the Border
The Yuma mayor highlighted that most illegal crossings involve human smuggling networks and drug cartels. Criminal organizations charge migrants anywhere from $4,000 to $40,000 for passage into the U.S., often trapping them in a cycle of indentured servitude.
Trump’s executive actions on Jan. 20 signaled a major shift, with ICE agents quickly detaining and deporting known criminal illegal immigrants in cities such as Chicago and Denver. Nicholls applauded the policy. “I don’t know anybody who’s in favor of keeping them here. So I don’t think that that’s really caused any sort of controversy,” he said.
Economic Devastation for Farmers and Local Businesses
Beyond crime and national security concerns, Nicholls pointed to the heavy economic toll illegal immigration has taken on Yuma’s agriculture and healthcare systems. A local hospital has racked up Libs Implode As ‘Self-Deportations’ Skyrocket Under Trump, while farmers have suffered staggering losses due to migrant trespassing.
Border Patrol agents recorded over Libs Implode As ‘Self-Deportations’ Skyrocket Under Trump, many occurring near the region’s lettuce farms. Migrants have been contaminating crops by Libs Implode As ‘Self-Deportations’ Skyrocket Under Trump, making the food supply unsafe and unsellable. “Farmers must abide by stringent food safety rules, and this trespass renders the crops completely unmarketable,” Yuma County Commissioner Jonathan Lines testified before Congress.
Lines noted that under the Biden administration, farmers were forced to invest millions in security fences and guards to protect their crops. Meanwhile, the Yuma region requires 50,000 legal farm workers to sustain its winter harvest, further highlighting the importance of enforcing immigration laws.
Other Border Towns Feel the Impact of Trump’s Crackdown
While Yuma is seeing relief, other Arizona towns are adjusting to the administration’s new policies. Douglas Mayor Jose Grijalva issued an emergency proclamation in response to Trump’s national emergency declaration and the deployment of military troops to the border.
Grijalva’s order expressed concern that closing off illegal crossings could negatively affect Douglas’ sales tax revenue and tourism. However, the Douglas Port of Entry remains fully operational for legal trade and travel, making the financial concerns exaggerated at best.
Nicholls, for his part, rejected the leftist media’s portrayal of border towns in chaos. “What I’m tracking is a perception impact—where people assume our cities are in chaos. They’re not,” he said. “We’ve seen some negative pushback in that regard for tourism, for job attraction, those kinds of things.”
With Trump’s border policies now in full swing, Yuma is witnessing a drastic decline in illegal crossings. As deportations ramp up and cartels face new pressure, cities like Yuma are proving that strong border enforcement works.
