Donald Trump has portrayed his immigration policies as good for public safety. He said this month that he had the "safest" immigration policy in history. However, data obtained by the Cato Institute through the Freedom of Information Act challenges this narrative. The newly uncovered information shows that while the Trump administration (2017-2020) was prioritizing prosecutions of migrant parents, separating families, and banning asylum, it also released criminals, including those who went on to commit crimes. Candidate Trump's "mass deportation" agenda will make the country less safe in two significant ways. First, it would remove a population that is less likely to commit crimes, ultimately making America's neighborhoods less safe. For instance, Cato's research has shown that both legal and illegal immigrants are nearly half as likely to commit crimes for which they are incarcerated in the United States. With unique data from Texas, we have found that immigrants--both legal and illegal--are less likely to commit homicides. Numerous studies have also found that immigration is linked to lower crime rates, homicide rates, and drug-related deaths.
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