Do We Really Need "A Wall"?
President Trump is asking the U.S. Taxpayers to shell out $5.5 billion to build a wall along our southern border, claiming that it’s a national security issue (many estimates suggest that the real cost would be more like $25 billion to build such a wall).
His request suggests that we have a major problem and that past efforts have been ineffective to the point that border control has become such a significant issue that it requires a major change in the methods/approach that are being applied to secure our borders and justifying a draconian change in both expenditures and tactics.
It seems to me, however, based on the information provided by the U.S. Government, that our efforts at border control have been largely successful over the past decade. My impression, based on a cursory look at the government's own statistical data leads me to conclude that there is no reasonable justification for spending such a large sum of the taxpayer’s dollars on this -- and, most importantly, not if the source of that funding would be a proposed reallocation of funds that would normally have been employed for things such as natural disaster mitigation (which is currently where the president plans to source these funds from).
Consider the following:
In 2005:
U.S. Border Patrol Budget: ~$1,525,000,000
~1,250,000 apprehended or turned away at border ($1,220 spent per person)
~150,000 illegal border crossings
In 2016:
U.S. Border Patrol Budget: ~$3,801,000,000
~400,000 apprehended or turned away at border ($9,500 spent per person)
~45,000 illegal border crossings
From 2005 - 1016:
Increase in budget: ~$2,276,000,000 (149% increase)
Reduction in those apprehended or turned away at the border: ~850,000 (68% reduction)
Reduction in illegal border crossings: ~106,000 (70% reduction)
I find it unconscionable that we would consider using the taxpayer's money this way, particularly when our recent border security efforts seem to have been so successful. Of course, one could always argue that they need to be more successful. I won't argue against such a point of view. But do we really need to spend between $5.5 and $25 billion on a wall when we have been so successful in stemming the tide of apprehensions and illegal border crossings over the past decade?
I would even agree that some tweaking of the system is in order and that some significant, additional expenditures and efforts might be called for at our ports of entry -- which is where (even) the Trump administration recognizes that there are still significant issues. But a border wall doesn't address these loopholes. Investing in a wall simply does not seem to be money well spent.