How Eisenhower solved illegal border crossings from Mexico

CS Monitor ^ | Jul 6, 2006 | John Dillin

[Ray76]

(Jul 6, 2006) George W. Bush isn't the first Republican president to face a full-blown immigration crisis on the US-Mexican border.

Fifty-three years ago, when newly elected Dwight Eisenhower moved into the White House, America's southern frontier was as porous as a spaghetti sieve. As many as 3 million illegal migrants had walked and waded northward over a period of several years for jobs in California, Arizona, Texas, and points beyond.

President Eisenhower cut off this illegal traffic. He did it quickly and decisively with only 1,075 United States Border Patrol agents – less than one-tenth of today's force.

America "was faced with a breakdown in law enforcement on a very large scale," Mr. Brownell (Attorney General) said. "When I say large scale, I mean hundreds of thousands were coming in from Mexico [every year] without restraint."

In 1954, Ike appointed retired Gen. Joseph "Jumpin' Joe" Swing, a former West Point classmate and veteran of the 101st Airborne, as the new INS commissioner.

General Swing's fast-moving campaign soon secured America's borders – an accomplishment no other president has since equaled. Illegal migration had dropped 95 percent by the late 1950s.

[Vaduz]

Illegal migration had dropped 95 percent.

I like the sound of that time to repeat it.

[Patton@Bastogne]

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Team Planning Guide for your "National Day of Reckoning" protest against Obama's Illegal Amnesty - (click)



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[goat granny]

I think LBJ and the democrats did more to destroy the African American family than their friends the KKK. Made dads obsolete the government could take care of the babies born out of wedlock.They truly are the evil party.

[X-spurt]

LBJ was indeed one of our Liberty’s worst enemy.

An appropriate monument for LBJ at his gravesite would be a urinal.

[ek_hornbeck]

Thank you for resurrecting this timely article.

It's a great rebuttal to closet supporters of amnesty who keep telling us "you can't deport 11 million people!" Technically, that's true, in the same way that you'll never catch every criminal, but it's no excuse not to do our best to try.

[Ray76]

> ...in the same way that you’ll never catch every criminal, but it’s no excuse not to do our best to try.

There is no excuse for not even trying.

[ek_hornbeck]

I’m convinced that most of those who throw up their hands in defeat and say “We can’t deport them all, so let’s not even attempt to do so” are all closet supporters of amnesty and de facto open borders.

[Pelham]

bttt