Of course it matters what we do at the border. Stem the flow and then take care of the rest.
All of the Reps say secure the border, but what does that mean? What are the metrics? How will it be done? And what does it accomplish? 40% of the lawbreakers come here legally and overstay their visas. If you don't include that as part of securing the border, then it leaves a huge gap.
We can chew gum and walk at the same time. We need to strengthen interior enforcement on visa overstays and enlist state and local law enforcement to assist in the enforcement effort. We need to shut off the job magnet, which will reduce the numbers trying to come here.
We know that nothing will be done at the border for the next 18 months. Did you ever wonder why the Reps have not put forward a stand alone border security bill now that they control Congress? I'll give you a few guesses.
Right now, tens of thousands of "children" are surrendering to the BP, who then put them in centers for eventual distribution throughout the country either to reunite with relatives or be put in foster homes. All at taxpayer expense. And to top things off the Obama administration is flying the parents from their home countries to be reunited with their children in the US. It is insanity.
In the meantime Obama is providing amnesty to hundreds of thousands and eventually millions. The 2012 Dreamer amnesty has legalized 580,000 to date providing them with SSNs, work permits, and the ability to travel in and out of the country. Millions more are planed in the second Executive amnesty that is temporarily being held up in the courts. Obama still managed to legalize over 100,000 disregarding the court's order to halt the proceedings.
Securing the border "first" appeals to the low information voter. A simplistic, somewhat ineffective solution, to a complex problem. It has almost become a mantra during campaign season. The reality is that securing the border is a national security issue. In addition to the illegal aliens, drug smugglers, and terrorists are coming across as well. The border area has become a no-man's land. We have lost control of it.
My point about the border and illegal immigration is that we can secure the border and have interior enforcement, but the real, long term damage is being done by legal immigration. It has been going on since 1965. In 1970 one in 21 was foreign born in this country; today it is one in 8, the highest in 90 years; and within a decade it will be one in 7, the highest in our history. In 1970 there were 9.7 million foreign born; today, it is 41.5 million. We are being colonized by the Third World--legally. Doing one thing at a time in some sort of sequence is not the right approach. We are like the proverbial frog being slowly boiled to death. By the time the frog realizes what is happening, it is too late. We may be at that point now.