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Thursday, February 13, 2025

Illegal border crossings record low on Trump crackdown, on track for levels not seen in 60 years

You can almost hear a pin drop at the border.

Border crossings have plummeted to levels not seen in decades this month following President’s Trump’s swift crackdown on illegal immigration across the southwest, The Post can reveal.

So far in February, about 359 illegal migrants per day have been caught across the entire southern border — down more than 90% from February 2024, according to leaked Customs and Border Protection data.

That puts the US on track to have the lowest monthly border crossings in at least 25 years. If the trend continues, the number of illegal migrants coming into the US could hit a level not seen since 1968, nearly 60 years ago.

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It’s the lowest the US has seen “in almost a lifetime,” said Mark Krikorian, the executive director at the Center for Immigration Studies.

“If you kind of break down the numbers, divide them by 365, we haven’t had numbers this low since the 1960s. So we’re talking 60-year lows if it’s sustained, obviously,” he said.

The CBP data shows that just 3,953 illegal migrants have been caught this month through Feb. 11.

If the trend continues through the month, that would put February border crossings at roughly 10,000, which is a number that hasn’t been seen since CBP began tracking month-to-month data in 1999.

The closest crossings have come to 10,000 was in April 2017 — shortly after Trump took office the first time — when monthly crossings exceeded 11,000.

“That’s a very, very low number,” said John Gramlich, the associate director at the Pew Research Center.

He noted that border crossings have been trending down for nearly a year, after former President Joe Biden moved to make it tougher for illegal migrants to claim asylum at the border.

This time last year, border agents were seeing 4,850 migrants crossing on average each day — more than 10 times current levels, federal data shows.

And the effects are being felt across the entire southern border.

In Terrell County, Texas, Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland says his office is usually flooded with reports of illegal migrant crossings this time of year due to the the cooler weather at the border.

“It’s a relief,” Cleveland told The Post.

“We’ve gone from one extreme to the other extreme, historic levels of people crossing, historic levels of the low apprehensions. It’s very surprising,” he said.

San Diego, California, remains the number one region for illegal border crossings, where 934 illegal migrants have crossed so far this month.

The Trump administration has nearly sealed off the border with Mexico, ending the Biden administration’s “catch and release” policy, deploying thousands of additional troops to the border and commencing a mass deportation effort across the nation.

“Already in the last few weeks a message is being sent out that the border isn’t going to be trampled over anymore, that national security isn’t a joke to us,” a Border Patrol source told The Post of the changes.

Mexico to sent 10,000 of its own troops to the border after Trump threatened to impose a sweeping 25% tariff on all imports to the US.

Meanwhile, the new administration has also focused on ramping up ICE raids, leading to 11,000 arrests of illegal migrants roaming the country within the first 18 days of Trump’s tenure.

Trump has also started sending illegal migrant criminals to Guantanamo Bay and restarted deportation flights to Venezuela after the Maduro regime halted the effort for nearly a year.

Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks recently said on “Fox & Friends” that agents working the frontlines needed Trump’s leadership to get the job done.

“US Border Patrol knows how to get the job done, we know how to secure the border,” he said.

“All we needed was a president that was going to empower us — a strong leader like President Trump — and a secretary like Secretary Noem that knows exactly what we need to do to secure the border.”

https://nypost.com/2025/02/13/us-news/illegal-border-crossings-hit-record-lows-could-be-on-track-for-levels-not-seen-for-60-years/

Bristol Myers Squibb Cancer Treatment Misses Primary Endpoint in Trial

Bristol Myers Squibb said it is disappointed with the outcome of a study that examined whether one of its drugs could be used to treat a certain type of skin cancer.

The drug, Opdualag, didn't meet its primary endpoint of recurrence-free survival when used as an additional treatment for patients with completely resected stage III-IV melanoma.

Vice President Jeffrey Walch, Opdualag global program lead, said Thursday that patients whose tumors are completely resected, or surgically removed, may not have enough antitumor T cells left for the drug to have its maximal effect.

"Opdualag remains a standard of care in the first-line treatment of unresectable or metastatic melanoma," he said, "and we continue to explore its potential across tumor types, including in non-small cell lung cancer."

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/BRISTOL-MYERS-SQUIBB-COMP-11877/news/Bristol-Myers-Squibb-Cancer-Treatment-Misses-Primary-Endpoint-in-Trial-49055801/

Gandhi's Playbook: From Ignored To Attacked By DC Swamp Creatures - What's Next For DOGE?

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win," Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian political and spiritual leader, famously said decades ago.

Remember Gandhi's quote throughout the note as a rough framework of what could happen next...

Gandhi's quote could very well apply to the situation unfolding in Washington, D.C., where President Trump and Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency have exposed what some believe to be the D.C. Swamp Uniparty siphoning billions of US taxpayer dollars each year through a complex web of NGOs funded by USAID.

First, the Uniparty ignored and mocked DOGE...

Then, in the last several weeks, Uniparty swamp creatures declared war on DOGE:

Meltdowns...

All because the Deep State grift is over... Here's how it worked through a web of NGOs:

And now, swamp creature Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer—after weeks of attacking DOGE, along with his colleagues declaring war on Musk and Trump, has finally admitted an inconvenient truth for the Deep State cheerleaders of the Democratic Party: "Everyone knows there's waste in government that should be cut." However, he noted: "But DOGE is using a meat axe, and they're cutting things that are efficient and effective."

Just a week ago, Schumer was in full panic mode, warning that DOGE would bring disaster—without a single mention of the need to cut government waste. In fact, he and his colleagues were advocating for the opposite: preserving USAID and maintaining the status quo.

So what changed in one week for Schumer to admit there's actual waste and fraud in the government? Maybe because he finally understood that most Americans gave Trump this mandate for more transparency in the government to understand where their monies are going.

Suppose we follow Gandhi's quote, given Schumer's admittance that government fraud and waste are plentiful. In that case, Trump has a good shot at overcoming and winning the fight on government efficiency despite the short-term noise of Democrats yelling at the sky outside the US Treasury building.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/gandhis-playbook-ignored-attacked-dc-swamp-creatures-whats-next-doge

Trump launches plan to target countries with new tariffs

US President Donald Trump is sharpening plans to hit exports from countries that he says have trade policies that are unfair to the US.

On Thursday, Trump signed a memo that instructed staff to develop custom tariffs for each country, taking into account features such as their existing tariffs, exchange rates, trade balances and other rules.

In outlining its concerns, the White House said that tariffs imposed by other countries were not necessarily the biggest issue, singling out the European Union for other policies the Trump administration said put US exporters at a disadvantage.

While big questions remain about the plans, the announcement is likely to kick off trade talks around the world.

Which countries could be affected?

The memo signed by the president asked that staff report back for a plan for "reciprocal trade and tariffs" within 180 days.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said his team would be ready to hand a plan to the president by 1 April.

Trump cast his plan for so-called reciprocal tariffs as part of his effort to bring investment to the US and boost manufacturing.

"If you build your product in the United States, there are no tariffs," he said, adding that he was "just doing what was fair".

"In almost all cases, they're charging us vastly more than we charge them but those days are over," he said. "This should have been done a long time ago."

As well as the European Union, Trump's moves are expected to have an impact on trade relationships with countries such as India, Vietnam and Thailand, which have relatively higher tariffs and rely on the US as a big market for exports.

Trump signed the memo ahead of a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has already taken steps to reduce tariffs on key items such as motorcycles, which Trump made an issue during his first term.

In recent days, officials in Thailand and Vietnam have also said they were reviewing trade with the US.

Ahead of Trump's announcement, the European Union said it was committed to "maintaining a close partnership with the US".

"We will continue to seek constructive engagement," Olof Gill, the commission's spokesperson for trade said. "At the same time, we stand ready to protect our interests."

What are reciprocal tariffs?

A tariff is a tax on imports collected by the government. It is paid by the company importing the good.

Countries typically erect tariffs in a bid to protect certain sectors from foreign competition.

Historically, the US has championed free trade and kept the majority of its tariffs low, except on certain products such as footwear and, more recently, steel and aluminium.

The US has an average tariff rate of 3.4%, compared with an average rate of 5% in Europe, according to the WTO.

In setting out its plans, the White House cited objections to tariffs such as the 10% tax that US-made cars face in Europe, compared with the 2.5% tariff the US applies to cars brought into the US.

The White House also said that Brazil charges an 18% tariff on ethanol imports, while the US charges a 2.5% tariff on the same product.

But officials made clear that the US intends to use tariffs to challenge policies farther afield, citing concerns about the digital services taxes many countries, including Canada and the UK, have unveiled against Big Tech firms - many of which are US-based - as well as Europe's rules for its Value Added Tax (VAT), a kind of sales tax.

What impact could tariffs have on the economy?

Thursday's announcement comes after a string of tariff-related moves from the new administration.

Earlier this week, Trump ordered the US to start charging a 25% import tax on all steel and aluminium brought into the country, ending exemptions for countries including the European Union, UK and Brazil. That is due to go into effect next month.

He also raised tariffs on all goods from China to 10% and threatened to hit imports from Canada and Mexico with duties of 25%, a plan that has been put on hold until March.

Shares on Wall Street rose after no immediate tariffs were announced.

John Cassidy, chief executive of Red Cedar Investment Management, said Trump's string of rapid-fire tariff announcements had unnerved Wall Street, which "does not like the unknown".

But he warned against over-reacting, noting that tariffs that Trump imposed during his first term had a relatively mild impact on the US economy.

"I think Trump's playing a hand here and I think he's got a very strong hand to play." he said.

However, Alex Durante, economist at the Tax Foundation, said it remained to be seen what changes could result from Trump's moves.

He does not think tariffs are the best strategy for dealing with trade complaints, given the costs and uncertainty they introduce for US firms and risks of retaliation.

"I think we're inching toward more and more tariffs with each coming week and further escalation of a trade war with other countries," he said.

He noted that Trump in his first term walked away from the Trans Pacific Partnership, a free trade agreement that had been intended to address some of these same issues with countries in Asia.

"They were open to doing this without having to put the US through more trade uncertainty," he said.

Trump has dismissed concerns about collateral trade damage, saying his plans will boost manufacturing in the US over the long term.

"What's going to go up is jobs are going to go up," he said. "Prices could go up somewhat short term, but prices will also go down."

But surveys indicate the US public remains concerned about the cost of living and is unconvinced about the benefits of tariffs, which economists have warned are likely to lead to higher prices for US businesses and households.

A recent Marquette Law School poll found just 24% of respondants believe tariffs will help the US economy, including just under half of Republicans and just 12% of independents and 4% of Democrats.

"The question is are these tariffs going to lead to higher inflation, higher costs of goods," said Charles Franklin, director of the poll. "The fairness argument is probably a good argument for the president to make but the price impact is much more of a hard thing to sell".

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c360lle165ro

Trump Tells Xi, Putin 'Let's Cut Military Budget In Half' - Says Russia Should Be Back In G7

On Thursday President Donald Trump continued to signal positive feelings about a future relationship with Russia and Putin, telling reporters that he'd like to see Russia invited back in to join the The Group of Seven major economies, or G7, which until 2014 was the G8 when Russia was included.

"I'd love to have them back. I think it was a mistake to throw them out. Look, it's not a question of liking Russia or not liking Russia. It was the G8," Trump said from the Oval Office upon announcing new US reciprocal tariffs.

"I said, 'What are you doing? You guys - all you're talking about is Russia and they should be sitting at the table.' And he then added, "I think Putin would love to be back."

The G7 countries are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US. In 2014 these nations decided to expel Russia over the annexation of Crimea, but Moscow pointed out that Crimeans overwhelmingly voted to become part of the Russian Federation after a popular referendum.

Another highlight from the Oval Office press conference was when the president called on China and Russia to join the United States in agreeing to cut their enormous defense budgets in half. He said in the context of also urging the three major powers to restart nuclear arms control talks.

"One of the first meetings I want to have is with President Xi of China, President Putin of Russia. And I want to say, ‘let’s cut our military budget in half.’ And we can do that. And I think we’ll be able to," Trump declared.

According to an Associated Press summary of the comments:

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump lamented the hundreds of billions of dollars being invested in rebuilding the nation’s nuclear deterrent and said he hopes to gain commitments from the U.S. adversaries to cut their own spending.
"There’s no reason for us to be building brand new nuclear weapons, we already have so many," Trump said. “You could destroy the world 50 times over, 100 times over. And here we are building new nuclear weapons, and they’re building nuclear weapons.”

“We’re all spending a lot of money that we could be spending on other things that are actually, hopefully much more productive,” Trump continued.

Trump: "One of the first meetings I want to have is with President Xi of China, President Putin of Russia, and I want to say, 'let's cut our military budget in half.' And we can do that." pic.twitter.com/Z8osuKnHVg
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 13, 2025

Russia and the US have long had the world's biggest nuclear arsenals, but China has in the last ten years been making strides to greatly bolster its strategic capabilities, which has alarmed the West. Trump warned that any future nuclear use by a global power is "going to be probably oblivion."

Likely Moscow and Beijing will receive these words positively as an overture, especially on the nuclear front, but neither will actually heed Trump's call to pledge a 50% reduction in defense spending - especially when Russia is at war in Ukraine and under US-EU sanctions. They might tell the Trump White House instead: 'your move first'.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/trump-russia-should-be-back-g7-tells-xi-putin-lets-cut-military-budget-half

FDA Misled the Judiciary about Pfizer’s Vaccine Documents

On December 6, 2024, a federal judge ordered the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to release documents related to the emergency use authorisation of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine. These documents had been hidden from public view.

The legal battle traces back to September 2021, when attorney Aaron Siri filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) on behalf of the Public Health and Medical Professionals for Transparency. The plaintiffs sought access to the vast trove of documents the FDA relied on to approve Pfizer’s vaccine.

Initially, the FDA proposed a slow release schedule. In November 2021, the agency stated it would release just 500 pages per month—a pace that would have stretched the full disclosure process to 75 years.

However, in January 2022, District Judge Mark Pittman of Texas rejected the FDA’s proposal, ordering the agency to expedite its release to 55,000 pages per month, aiming to complete the disclosure of all 450,000 pages by August 2022.

As the documents trickled out, researchers began uncovering glaring gaps that prevented a systematic review of the data. These gaps fueled suspicions about what else the FDA might be withholding.

It became evident that the FDA had withheld records directly tied to its emergency use authorisation of Pfizer’s vaccine, estimated to be over one million pages.

These documents, which the FDA had full knowledge of, were excluded from earlier disclosures, effectively misleading the judiciary and undermining public trust.

Siri didn’t mince words.

“The FDA has been hiding a million pages from the Court, the plaintiff, and the public. Only those concerned about the truth seek to conceal evidence,” said Siri in an interview.

“The FDA here is clearly concerned about the truth and lacks confidence in the review that it conducted to license Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine because it is doing everything possible to prevent independent scientists from conducting an independent review,” he added.

Judge Pittman’s latest court order to expedite the full disclosure of documents acknowledges the public’s right to scrutinise the data that underpin one of the most significant public health interventions in history.

In his ruling, Judge Pittman invoked a powerful reminder from American revolutionary Patrick Henry: “The liberties of a people never were, nor ever will be, secure, when the transactions of their rulers may be concealed from them.”

Pittman concluded, “The COVID-19 pandemic is long passed, and so has any legitimate reason for concealing from the American people the information relied upon by the government in approving the Pfizer vaccine.”

According to the latest court order, the additional documents are slated for release by June 2025. However, Siri is unsure about whether the FDA will release these records in installments or in a single tranche. Either way, he is not taking any chances.

Siri issued a legal notice to the FDA and other agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services, warning against the destruction, deletion, or modification of any relevant documents and vowing to report any such violations to the Department of Justice.

“The FDA has spent far too long thinking it can do whatever it wants without accountability,” Siri said.

He speculated that the FDA may try to extend its deadline and prolong the legal battle, given its army of attorneys and vast resources.

“I think they’re hoping that we will just go away. What the FDA doesn’t know is that we’re never going away. We won’t stop fighting for freedom and rights, ever,” added Siri defiantly.

A spokesperson at the FDA said it “does not comment on ongoing litigation.”

Maryanne Demasi, 2023 Brownstone Fellow, is an investigative medical reporter with a PhD in rheumatology, who writes for online media and top tiered medical journals. For over a decade, she produced TV documentaries for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and has worked as a speechwriter and political advisor for the South Australian Science Minister.

https://brownstone.org/articles/fda-misled-the-judiciary-about-pfizers-vaccine-documents/

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