For years, Joe Biden pretended that mass illegal migration was an unavoidable crisis beyond his control. But when his open-border policies started tanking his election chances, he suddenly sprang into action, sending senior officials to beg Mexico to slow the flow of illegal migrants. The result? A sharp decline in border crossings during his final months in office — proving he had the power to act all along but simply chose not to.

Now, President Trump has once again demonstrated that strong leadership and a firm stance on immigration work. His “deter, detain, deport” strategy has swiftly dismantled the incentives that previously encouraged economic migrants to flood across the border and abuse America’s asylum system.

Beyond securing the border, Trump has also made it clear that foreign governments will no longer get a free pass when it comes to taking back their citizens. Countries that once refused to accept deported nationals under Biden’s weak leadership are quickly falling in line under Trump’s tough, no-nonsense diplomacy.

Under Biden, illegal immigrants and their smugglers knew they had nothing to fear. If they reached the U.S. border, they could expect a quick “arrest” followed by a near-immediate release into the country. If that was too much trouble, they could simply apply for one of Biden’s made-up parole “pathways” — a scheme bankrolled by billions in U.S. taxpayer dollars funneled to the United Nations and Left-wing NGOs.

Those days are over. Biden’s border free-for-all is finished. Immigration enforcement is back.

On day one, Trump issued a series of executive orders shutting down the Biden border bonanza. Illegal aliens apprehended at the border are now being detained, as required by law. Trump has also announced plans to double U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention capacity, including an additional 30,000 beds for criminal illegal aliens at Guantanamo Bay.

For those who managed to slip in under Biden’s lax policies, their days of indefinite illegal residency are numbered. The odds of staying in the U.S. without a legitimate asylum claim have plummeted. Trump is making good on his promise to deport illegal aliens and enforce existing immigration laws — something Biden flatly refused to do.

Take, for example, the latest showdown between Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro — a leader who, much like Biden, talked tough but folded the moment he was met with real consequences.

On Sunday, Petro tried to block two U.S. military planes carrying deported Colombians from landing. His attempt at defiance didn’t last long. Within an hour, Trump made it clear that economic and visa sanctions were on the table if Colombia refused to take back its citizens. Suddenly, Petro had a change of heart. Not only did he allow the deportation flights to land, but he went a step further—sending Colombian government planes to pick up the deported migrants himself. By Wednesday, 201 illegal aliens were back on Colombian soil.

It was a stark contrast to the Biden years, when foreign leaders knew they could dictate terms to a weak U.S. president with no fear of repercussions. Under Biden, illegal migration exploded as his Department of Homeland Security openly ignored laws requiring the detention of migrants. Instead, millions were released and transported across the country — many of them never to be seen again.

Biden also allowed over 1.5 million inadmissible aliens to enter through his parole scheme, a blatant abuse of executive authority. The vast majority of these migrants were not asylum seekers fleeing persecution but economic migrants looking for work — essentially skipping the legal immigration process without the hassle of paperwork or waiting their turn.

Biden’s open-border policies gave them exactly what they wanted. Few were tracked. Many had criminal records. And nearly all received work permits simply by filing an asylum claim, regardless of its legitimacy. But that’s all changing.

Colombians and other would-be migrants are already hearing about the policy shift on social media. Many will now think twice about making the journey, realizing that their odds of sneaking in and staying under Biden are gone. Those in need of legitimate asylum will be encouraged to seek safety in a closer, stable country rather than attempting to game the system in the U.S.

One of the Colombians deported this week admitted he was “surprised to find out that they weren’t letting anyone get in.” He and most of the others on his flight were caught just days after illegally entering the U.S., expecting the same easy entry Biden had allowed for four years. Instead, they were swiftly rounded up and sent back.

The fact that the U.S. is enforcing its immigration laws should not come as a shock. But after four years of Biden’s reckless policies, it’s making waves worldwide. From Afghanistan to Zambia, the message is clear: America is no longer a free-for-all. Trump is back, and the era of open borders is over.

Are you pleased with the job Trump is doing with illegal immigration thus far? Let us know in the comments!