MSNBC analyst acknowledges that the record-breaking border crossings were not one of Biden's strongest decisions.

MSNBC analyst acknowledged on Thursday that the border issue was not President Biden's strongest moment, given the record-breaking number of border crossings over the years.

On MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Steve Rattner, an economic analyst and former Obama official, presented a chart comparing border crossings under President Biden and President-elect Trump. The chart revealed that at one point, nearly four times as many migrants crossed the border under Biden compared to Trump.

"Rattner stated that the border was not Biden's strongest moment, as evidenced by the sharp increase in border crossings. Trump's claim that border crossings were low when he left office is accurate, as they were running at around 74,000 a month. However, Rattner pointed out that some of the increase was due to Biden's statements and the moratorium on deportations. Despite this, the border crossings did reach almost 300,000 a month."

Despite facing backlash over illegal immigration, the Biden administration has managed to control it.

"Border crossings have nearly returned to their level under Trump, with about 100,000 people crossing daily. Unfortunately, this was costly to Biden during the election."

In a guest essay for the New York Times, Rattner discussed the role of the border in the 2024 election.

The Democrats' election loss can be attributed to Americans' fears of migrants crossing the southern border. Biden's early mistake, which appeared to encourage migrants to enter the US, led to a surge of encounters to over 300,000 a month by late 2023, compared to 74,000 at the end of the Trump presidency, according to Rattner.

Despite not acknowledging this, by the end of 2024, the total had nearly returned to its level four years prior, which Mr. Biden should be credited for.

In Dec. 2023, migrant crossings reached a record level of over 302,000 encounters, despite Biden's executive order in the months leading up to the election aimed at limiting the number of crossings.

Despite Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas' claim that the border was secure in 2021, he admitted last month that executive action from Biden could have been taken earlier.