Fact check: How many illegal immigrants did clinton deport

1. Summary of the results

During Clinton's presidency (1993-2001), the total number of deportations consisted of two categories:

• Approximately 827,100-870,000 formal removals (deportations) ^{[1] [2]}
• Between 10-11.4 million "returns" or voluntary departures ^{[1] [2]}

The total combined figure ranges from 10.87 to 12 million, depending on the source ^[3]

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

Several important contextual points need to be considered:

• There's a crucial distinction between formal "removals" (deportations) and "returns" (voluntary departures), which is often overlooked in immigration discussions ^[2]
• Clinton's presidency saw significant changes in immigration policy, particularly through the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996, which expanded the grounds for deportation ^[4]
• The majority of these numbers came from voluntary returns at the U.S.-Mexico border, not formal deportations ^[3]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The question itself could lead to misunderstandings because:

• Simply asking about "deportations" without distinguishing between formal removals and voluntary returns can lead to inflated numbers being cited
• Politicians have used these numbers selectively - for example, Ted Cruz's claims about Clinton's deportation numbers were found to be misleading ^[2]
• The statistics can be manipulated depending on whether one includes both formal removals and voluntary returns, or just counts formal deportations

Those who benefit from higher deportation numbers (such as immigration hardliners) might include voluntary returns in their counts, while those advocating for more lenient immigration policies might focus only on formal removals to present a different picture.