U.S. Population Growth Slows Sharply as Immigration Numbers Plunge
New census estimates show the effects of falling birthrates and President Trump’s anti-immigration policies. As his term continues, immigration is expected to drop even further.
The United States population grew last year at one of the slowest rates in its history, according to new numbers released on Tuesday by the Census Bureau. The immigration numbers plunged by more than 50 percent from the previous year, under the aggressive anti-immigration policies of President Trump. And the birthrate continued its nearly two-decade long decline.
The nation’s population increased by about 1.8 million over the year, and stood at almost 342 million on July 1, the estimates say. That is a growth rate of about 0.5 percent, the lowest since 2021, when the Covid-19 pandemic caused deaths to soar and borders to close, shutting the door to international migration. That year saw the slowest growth since the nation’s founding.