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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nearly all of President-elect Donald Trump’s sweeping agenda on border security has been focused on the U.S. southern border. Now, one Democrat lawmaker is calling for more enforcement at the northern border, too.
With Republicans now controlling both the House and Senate, the next federal budget is expected to include more money for border security.
Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, wants more of those resources to go to the northern border.
“With the Arctic melting now, the Russians and the Chinese have developed a real facility north of Canada,” Kaptur said. “We have to be aware of that and make sure that our northern border is equally protected.”
Though the northern border only accounts for 7% of encounters with undocumented immigrants, according to CBP data, the nearly 200,000 encounters in 2024 represent a more than 500% increase since 2020.
Kaptur’s district in northwestern Ohio includes U.S. Border Patrol’s Sandusky Bay Station in Port Clinton. Built in 2012, it is the first-ever U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facility constructed to house the Border Patrol, Office of Field Operations and Office of Air and Marine in the same building.
“We built in Ottawa County, Ohio, the largest Border Patrol station in the north, but the Great Lakes are north of the Border Patrol station,” she said. “We need more help with equipment. We need more personnel. We need more vehicles. We deal on air, land and sea.”
Kaptur’s comments come amid a broad shift in public opinion on immigration and border security. A Gallup poll found 55% of Americans want to see less immigration, the highest number since 2001.
President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance capitalized on this sentiment during the presidential campaign, pledging to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
Kaptur also took a tougher stance on border security as part of her reelection campaign, neutralizing a Republican line of attack.
“Anybody who comes here should come here legally. That’s number one. And that’s where the priorities should be,” she said.
The strategy helped her win a 22nd term, in which she continues to break her own record as the longest-serving woman in Congress.
Sitting on the powerful House Appropriations Committee, Kaptur has some influence over allocating funds to northern border security.
