Misleading Claims: The Truth Behind 320,000 Missing Migrant Children Under Biden

Recent political discourse has centered on immigration, particularly regarding the fate of unaccompanied migrant children. Claims circulating on social media allege that hundreds of thousands of these children are missing during President Joe Biden’s administration.

During a recent vice presidential debate, Vice President-elect JD Vance asserted that “320,000 children that DHS has effectively lost.” Former President Donald Trump echoed this sentiment at a rally in Arizona, mentioning “325,000 migrant children are gone, they’re missing.” Such statements have drawn public scrutiny and requests for clarification.

To address these claims, a closer look at the evidence is necessary.

The assertion that 320,000 children are missing originates from a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report published in August 2024. This report did not state that these children were missing but noted difficulties in tracking their locations after being released from federal custody. Additionally, the children referenced had arrived between 2018 and 2023, covering both Trump and Biden’s terms.

The misinterpretation stems from a lack of clarity regarding the data. DHS indicated that it struggles to monitor about 320,000 migrant children due to communication issues between various government agencies. Importantly, this figure does not imply that all these children are lost or endangered. Experts have emphasized that missing paperwork contributes significantly to this predicament rather than actual disappearances.

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy director of the American Immigration Council, pointed out that from 2019 to 2023, 32,000 unaccompanied children were ordered deported for missing court hearings. However, 291,000 others had no formal removal proceedings initiated, emphasizing again the communication gap within government processes.

Despite the alarming statistics, DHS has not classified these children as missing. Various reasons account for children not appearing for court proceedings, including incorrect addresses and challenges faced by guardians in attending court hearings.

Experts, including Michelle Mittelstadt of the Migration Policy Institute, stressed that issues are predominantly administrative. The absence of updated addresses does not equate to children being lost or trafficked. It is likely many reside in stable homes, attending school and adapting to life in the United States.

Further complicating this situation is the legacy of the prior administration’s “zero tolerance” policy, which mandated family separations, leading to many children being categorized as “unaccompanied alien children.” This policy shift laid a foundation for ongoing challenges in monitoring these vulnerable individuals.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.