What they don't understand is the stance that anti-immigration advocates have taken, when it is the faulty immigration protocols that have led to much of the illegal presence here. We have totally screwed up what once was a migrant labor force that moved back and forth and transited the border when the work was done or there was a hiatus.
Now they are forced to stay for fear of never returning or giving up their jobs to someone else.
This is just one of the many mistakes we have made which has led to the present situation.
Comprehensive legislation is critical to address all the various concerns, and that will take most of the pressures off the border which could then be protected effectively, eliminating the dozens of criminal enterprises designed especially for the smuggling of workers, that is now being used by the drug cartels and others as well.
IMO, walls, fences and 24hour surveillance is certainly needed in many areas, but to think that it will not be circumvented by the tremendous pressures that are now being applied to our current resources is a foolish idea. We have many thousands of miles of coastline that would then need 24 hour Coast Guard protection, not to mention a zillion square miles of airspace. This fact makes the idea that securing the borders alone is nothing more than a fools fix, a pipe dream, and that we must address all of the problem, and not just the obvious.
If we are successful, the migrant flow will return, allowing the now legally documented to transit and the illegal to be deported on sight.
If we are successful, the need for unskilled and skilled labor will largely be met, and will vary with the economic realities. This will mitigate the border pressures which will slow drastically and eventually stop the illegal transiting by people who only come to work. Then we can use our resources to address the criminals and those who come for unknown or harmful reasons.
On the U.S. tax side and business side the tax money will now be collected for Federal, State and Local jurisdictions, and this alone will help our burgeoning problems in Social Security, Workman's Comp, unemployment and the like.
On the security side, we will know who is here, where they are and how many are here in individual numbers as well as extended family.
All this will greatly improve assimilation and this will help everything from education to every aspect of society.
The fact is, we have no real options. The idea that we can somehow ignore all the realities and gain control of this problem by shear force of will is nonsense. We need to use the momentums and energy of the immigration situation on our southern border to achieve control of it. If we ignore that momentum and energy, it will simply run over any barrier put in it's way and unassimilated illegal populations will cause social problems that could severely damage the entire country.
We have totally screwed up what once was a migrant labor force that moved back and forth and transited the border when the work was done or there was a hiatus.
I understand your post, and your logically-placed intention... however, illegals are no longer "migrant workers". They are waiters and busboys and house framers and manicurists and delivery boys and shop clerks. They are absolutely doing jobs that Americans would do. I lived in Los Angeles for a decade and I can tell you that they are taking jobs that citizens want.
I don't know what the solution is. Well, except for my imperialistic desire to take over Mexico... we're paying the bills, but without the bonus of additional beachfront property.