US President Donald Trump recently ordered National Guard troops to the US-Mexico border to fight illegal immigration and drug smuggling. Trump said it was a remedial measure to improve security along the southern border.
Will Trump’s border wall initiative protect the US? Will a barrier help make the US free of drugs and human trafficking? Trump’s pledge sounds beautiful and gorgeous, but the truth may prove otherwise.
Trump once again showed his determination on waging war against drugs and illegal border crossings on Twitter where he suggested the use of a “nuclear option” to stop this massive flow from entering the US.
With the help of border patrol personnel, security cameras, and drones, a wall would be of some concern to Mexico’s drug cartels and citizens trying to enter the US illegally.
According to the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) annual National Drug Threat Assessment, most illegal drugs enter the US by boat, docking at ports of entry, where narcotics are hidden inside cars or commingled with legitimate goods on big-rig trucks.
While law enforcement plays a game of cat and mouse along the border, Mexico’s criminal organizations are operating their businesses beyond the constraints of physical barriers and laws. Mexico’s cartels use a variety of ways, including the Paso del Norte International Bridge in El Paso, Texas, to bring illegal drugs into the country and from there distribute them throughout US.
If the US government decides to build the wall, it will waste billions since drug traffickers would find new ways to get around such an obstacle. Simply put, this wall would only stop foolish criminals – not the organized ranks of the professional cartels.
Backed by the US, Felipe Calderón launched a war on drugs campaign after winning Mexico’s presidential election in 2006. Since then, the US has given the country $1.5 billion in aid to help support their anti-drug efforts. Unfortunately, Mexico’s efforts have proven to be unsuccessful, and they are still trying to shake its drug empire image.
Many are also asking if the proposed border wall will be effective stopping the flow of illegal immigrants entering the US.
According to a report by the Center for Migration Studies, since 2007, the number of undocumented immigrants who overstayed their visas after entering the country legally far outnumbered those who entered illegally.
The four sanctuary states, California, Connecticut, New Mexico and Colorado, have been joined by several sanctuary cities and counties to impede Trump’s efforts in curtailing illegal immigration.
Recently, Orange County has taken a stand against California's 'sanctuary' law and has defined state's laws as protecting immigrants who are in the country illegally, but this does not make deporting the undocumented any easier for Trump.
Trump’s obsession to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has not only caused political turmoil but also a humanitarian concern.
Once deported, many of those from the DACA program, otherwise known as “dreamers,” have found themselves in places they never knew as adults, where they struggle to start over in a country that has cut them off from their culture and language. Plus, it’s expected that many of those deported will find a way back to the US, legally or not, where their education and working skills could help them earn a decent living.
The dreamers issue will be a tug of war for Trump and US Congressional leaders, and a problem that a border wall can’t fix.