SAN DIEGO— Migrants waiting to enter the US through former Joe Biden’s CBP One app burst into tears after their appointments were canceled the moment President Trump took office on Monday, the first of many sweeping border actions planned for the new administration’s first day.
The app, which hundreds of thousands of migrants have used to enter the country since Biden introduced it two years ago, went dark at noon, the exact moment Trump was sworn in.
Migrants were no longer able to schedule immigration appointments, and the app indicated that any outstanding interview dates had been canceled.
A Washington Post reporter captured footage across the border in Jaurez of the anguish some migrants felt after learning their chance at entering the US had vanished, including one woman whose appointment was scheduled for just an hour after the app closed.
The woman sobbed quietly and slumped to her knees, while others stared despondently, tears streaming down their faces.
During his inaugural address, Trump declared the border crisis a national emergency and announced that he would send troops to enforce order.
He also outlined plans to use the Alien Enemies Act, which dates back to 1798 and was used during WWII to round up Japanese-Americans and place them in internment camps, to combat violent migrant gangs such as Tren de Aragua and MS-13 that have established themselves in the United States.
These gangs, which are made up of migrants from Venezuela and El Salvador, will also be designated as terrorist organizations.
Trump was also expected to sign an executive order that would end birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants born on US soil.
He will end Biden administration policies such as mass humanitarian parole, which grants special admission to the US to migrants from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
And Biden’s so-called “catch and release” policies, which allowed the vast majority of migrants apprehended at the border to be released into the United States, are expected to be discontinued as well.
Border wall construction will also resume, and “Remain in Mexico” will once again become US policy, forcing asylum seekers to remain outside the country while they await immigration hearings.
Trump announced plans to sign 11 sweeping border reforms within hours of his inauguration, attempting to reverse a historically massive surge of 8 million migrants under Biden.
Border Patrol agents near San Diego told The Post on Monday that illegal migrants are still making their way into the country and that more must be done to prevent them.
“They’re still coming in,” one agent explained.
The Post discovered gaps in the border wall, allowing people to walk right through.
“The cartels are still smuggling them across the border,” the agent explained.
Manny Bayon, President of the National Border Patrol Council’s San Diego sector, estimates that agents apprehend approximately 1,000 people attempting to cross illegally each day.
“We need to close the open border gaps. There are gaps in San Diego where they can walk directly into the countryside.”
There are an estimated 270,000 migrants waiting on the Mexican side of the southern border who attempted to enter the country before Trump took office.
Most were hoping to arrive at the border in time to use the CBP One app, which allowed over 43,000 people per month to schedule meetings with immigration officials at US ports of entry and gain legal entry into the country.
Since Biden introduced it in January 2023, over 900,000 migrants have used it to enter the country.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), meanwhile, was set to resume mass deportations of illegal immigrants in sanctuary cities across the country after Trump re-elected — but the operation was temporarily halted after details of raids were made public.