Nevada’s Republican candidate for Senate, Adam Laxalt, launched an ad saying he will stand up to President Joe Biden and Democrats to "secure our border." The ad shows Laxalt walking near a southwest border fence with three men who appear to be border authorities.
The 15-second TV ad claims, "Biden and Democrats have dismantled border security."
"Biden’s allies won’t admit they opened our borders," the narrator said, followed by clips of Vice President Kamala Harris saying "the border is secure" and Laxalt’s opponent, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., saying "there’s no open borders."
Is Laxalt right about Democrats having "dismantled border security"? No.
Migrant encounters at the southwest border have hit historic highs. In fiscal year 2022, Border Patrol recorded more than 2.2 million encounters with migrants, compared to 1.7 million in 2021. But the increase in encounters isn’t a result of reduced funding at the border.
A review of budget requests, staffing levels and immigration policy decisions show border security efforts have remained largely consistent under the Biden administration compared with under the Trump administration.
Laxalt’s campaign did not respond to PolitiFact’s request for comment.
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