Did Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum say that migrant caravans will no longer reach the U.S. border from her country in response to President-elect Donald Trump's threat of tariffs? No, that's not true: Sheinbaum actually said migrant caravans "no longer arrive at the border" because of her country's "comprehensive policy to assist migrants." The other reason is a U.S. program set up nearly two years ago that allows asylum seekers to apply through a phone app, she said.
The claim appeared in a post on Threads (archived here) on November 26, 2024. It said:
Within hours of President Trump announcing a 25% tariff on all goods sold in the US from Mexico, President Claudia Sheinbaum declares that no migrant caravans will reach the US Border. President Trump has promised to keep the tariffs in place 'until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!'
The post also included a graphic from a November 26, 2024, Newsweek article. Here is how the post looked at the time of writing:
(Source: Threads screenshot taken on Wed Nov 27 17:35:12 2024 UTC)
On November 26, 2024, Sheinbaum held a news conference after Trump threatened on his Truth Social platform (archived here) to impose a 25 percent tariff on all products coming in from Mexico. Lead Stories reviewed a video of the two-hour, 30-minute news conference, using the YouTube English translation tool.
At the 42:56 mark, Sheinbaum reads aloud a letter she was sending to Trump opposing any tariffs. She talks about migrant caravans. But she does not say Mexico is blocking the caravans in response to the tariff threat. Sheinbaum explained the caravans "no longer arrive at the border" because of earlier policy changes.
Here is a partial transcript of Sheinbaum's letter, translated into English using the Google Translate tool:
You are probably not aware that Mexico has developed a comprehensive policy of attention to migrants from different parts of the world who cross our territory and have as their destination the southern border of the United States of America. As a result and according to the figures of the Border Patrol and Customs of your country, meetings on the border between Mexico and the United States have been reduced by 75% from December 2023 to November 2024. By the way, half of those who arrive is through an appointment legally granted by the United States program called CBP One. For these reasons, caravans of migrants no longer arrive at the border.
(Source: YouTube screenshot taken on Wed Nov 27 18:56:17 2024 UTC)
The CBP One program (archived here) began October 28, 2020, to allow asylum seekers to find current immigration information on their mobile device. In January 2023, CBP One began allowing asylum seekers the ability to book an appointment with U.S. immigration authorities. Customs and Border Patrol reports so far 860,000 people (archived here) have booked appointments "to present at ports of entry instead of risking their lives in the hands of smugglers."
For other Lead Stories fact checks on claims regarding immigration, click here. For other Lead Stories fact checks on claims involving tariffs, click here. For more Lead Stories fact checks of claims concerning Claudia Sheinbaum, go here.
