All the political forces and all the regulatory dictates couldn’t influence illegal immigrants. The Center for Migration Studies released a report that found while this presidential debate has focused on stemming the tide of illegal immigration into the United States, the overall number of foreigners breaking the law to live here is on the decline. Since Obama entered office, one million more illegal immigrants have left this country than entered, and most of those declines were seen in Mexican populations. CMS noted that while states passed tougher immigration laws several years ago, the declines began before the laws were passed — which brings us back to the question of what economic factors discourage illegal immigration. Executive Director of CMS Donald Kerwin said, “Despite the claims of an ever-rising, out-of-control U.S. undocumented population, the number of undocumented has fallen each year since 2008. In addition, the number and percentage of foreign-born persons with legal status has increased. These trends should be applauded by partisans on all sides of the immigration debate.” Hot Air’s Taylor Millard notes, and notes well, that just like any other statistic, these numbers could have been bent to further a political ideology. But if the numbers hold true, then it means the policy wonks and talking heads don’t know everything there is to know about the forces influencing illegal immigration, nor how to unobtrusively stem its tide.

In related news, however, enforcement is also down under the Obama administration. The Washington Examiner’s Paul Bedard reports, “Criminal prosecution of immigration offenses over the past five years is down 36 percent, and the once-successful program of detaining illegal immigrants in state and local jails is in free fall, down by two-thirds, according reports from two federal agencies.”