Data on Drug Seizures Incompatible with Pundit and Elected-Officials' Claims

Conservative leaders are very concerned about the volume of drugs seized at the border this past months, so I decided to take a look at the data.

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

1/7 Our leaders were very concerned about the volume of drugs seized in Feb. @SenateGOP @HouseForeignGOP @GOPLeader @tedcruz, great news. Your data is misleading. Comparing last year's # to today is like comparing Biden's Apr '21 economy to Apr '20. Both or neither; you choose.

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

2/7 The data show clearly that drug seizures are not at never-before-seen highs, though I certainly empathize with @SteveDaines ' concerns about foreign product over-taking local. Personally, I'd like to see no hard drugs in my state, but that's just me. #bidenbordercrisis

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

3/7 Looking at the seizures in lbs/month, we see higher numbers in June 2020, which is surprising given the pandemic suppressed migrant travel. It's nearly as high as in 2019, the month we saw 144k border encounters. We saw 100k in Feb '21. #BidenBorderCrisis

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

4/7 Your assessment of the immigration data was similarly problematic. It was technically accurate not a fair presentation. One looking for the truth would be ill-advised to process it that way. #openscience #scicomm

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

5/7 The #border situation is critical but your focus on the presidency is puzzling. You did not think the President was causal in the surge in 2019 and it's doubtful migrants felt more welcome than in 2017. Numbers rose from Apr '20 to Sept '20 to a high not seen since 2019.

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

6/7 It's not clear why, when it was known that more children were arriving than normal and warm weather was certain to increase numbers after a depression last year, HHS refused aid until Jan 15, 2021. WH and HHS knew that it would take months to scout and prepare. Why?

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

7/7 More details on this in the @RanttMedia article, which looks at data, actions taken by each administration, and history. #datascience rantt.com/data-debunks-f… @brooklynmarie @DevinCow @propornot @yogaskidogs @ChrisMurphyCT @joncoopertweets @NeuSummits @womenindisinfo

rantt.comData Debunks False Narratives About The Border | Rantt MediaConservative pundits and elected officials have been pushing a “border crisis” narrative that lays blame exclusively on Biden. There’s just one problem: The facts say otherwise.

E. Rosalie @NovelSci

Bonus tweet: Here is the single image version for those who would like to share in Fb/Insta stories. I gotcha. 😊#dataviz #graphics #scicomm #sciart ##data #BidenBorderCrisis #BorderCrisis