ABC News’ Martha Raddatz surprised many viewers Sunday morning when she offered a rare fact-check of a prominent Democrat’s critique of President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda, noting that current border security efforts under Trump have shown demonstrable success.
During an interview segment with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Raddatz challenged the mayor’s assertion that Trump’s immigration policy had not achieved anything positive. Bass, a vocal critic of Trump’s approach, described the administration’s tactics as “punitive,” accusing it of intentionally fostering fear among immigrant communities.
“Los Angeles is a city of immigrants, 3.8 million people, and about 50% of our population is Latino,” Bass said. “When the raids started, fear spread like a virus around the entire county.” She further claimed that there was little to commend about the administration’s handling of immigration: “If you ask me, is there anything that they have done good in terms of immigration? I don’t know, I don’t think so.”
However, Raddatz pushed back after the segment aired.
“Whatever they’re doing is certainly working at the border itself,” Raddatz remarked, before noting, “We were down on that border, and it is dramatically, dramatically different than it was a year ago.”
Her comments referenced the latest U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data, which showed that June 2025 recorded the lowest number of southern border crossings in U.S. history — just 25,228 total CBP encounters, with only 8,024 illegal apprehensions. These record lows stand in stark contrast to the peak months under the Biden administration, including December 2023, which saw a record 251,178 encounters.
The Trump administration has credited these changes to a series of decisions designed to rein in illegal immigration, ramping up interior enforcement, and strengthening ICE’s operational reach. Many critics on the left have denounced the approach as overly aggressive, while supporters argue the results speak for themselves.
Bass acknowledged that the administration performed well in other areas — including emergency disaster response, citing its help after the wildfires in L.A. — but remained adamant that the immigration strategy lacks humanity and long-term vision.
When pressed about Raddatz’s remarks, Bass’s deputy mayor of communications, Zachary Seidl, attempted to downplay the contrast. “I don’t think Martha fact-checked the Mayor or even disagreed — it looks like Martha was talking about what she’s seen at the border and the Mayor was responding to a different question about what she’s seen in L.A.,” Seidl told Fox News Digital.
Still, the exchange has drawn attention for highlighting a growing divide between rhetoric in sanctuary cities like Los Angeles and the data-driven results emerging from federal enforcement at the southern border.
While Trump critics continue to oppose the tone and tactics of the administration’s immigration crackdown, recent polling and statistics suggest many Americans — including independent and moderate voters — are responding positively to the drop in illegal crossings and the restoration of border control.
As the 2026 midterms draw closer, the political implications of this success — and the Democrats’ continued resistance to it — could play a pivotal role in races across the country.
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3.5M Illegal Aliens, she means. She wouldn’t know a legal immigrant if she tripped over one!
Bass belongs in jail.