Where The Immigration Debate Stands Today

Title 42 is expiring on Thursday night, a pandemic-era rule allowing the U.S. government to turn away asylum seekers at the border as a public health measure. This comes at a time when apprehensions at the border are already at record highs and Americans give President Biden some of his lowest ratings on his handling of immigration.

According to Gallup, Americans say immigration is the third-biggest problem facing the country, behind the economy and poor leadership. And the number who say that the level of immigration in the U.S. should be decreased has doubled to 40 percent since Biden took office.

In this installment of the FiveThirtyEight Politics podcast, Galen speaks with Georgetown economics professor Anna Maria Mayda about what Americans think of immigration and why, its impacts on the U.S. and its politics, and how that compares with other countries.