There's been dueling "experts" trotted out both for and against building a border wall across the portions of the border where there isn't already one. The issue isn't whether walls "work" or not, but whether this wall should be funded and built. Here are a few reasons put forth by Trump and his supporters and my reasons why those are not valid:
The Argument of Deterrence:
It seems to be common sense that a high enough wall will prevent or deter people from crossing. Some Border Patrol agents claim that there job became a lot easier when barriers went up in the San Diego area. But even the highest wall can be scaled, tunneled under or cut through if there are no Border Patrol agents around. Personally I believe walls, fences, or other types of barriers can and should be part of an overall strategy for keeping our border secure, but the Trumpian idea that The Wall will magically solve all our problems at the U.S.-Mexico border, or with illegal immigration, or with criminals and drugs is not an idea that has been thought-through.
Democrats Have Voted For A Wall Several Times Before:
It is true that Democrats in previous Congresses have voted to construct walls and fences at the border, and that past Presidents, including Democrats, have pushed for more effective ways to control immigration. What is not true is that these politicians have supported a Wall in the form that is now being pushed, or for the reasons that underlie it. Even if Democrats had supported a Great Wall in the past, doesn't mean that it's a good idea now. Trumpists will say that this is hypocrisy on the part of the Democrats: that they are only opposing construction of a Wall because Trump is for it. For a party that made its whole platform opposing anything that a Democratic president wanted to do, this certainly puts the shoe on the hypocritical other foot. (Of course the point that I just made is whataboutism, but I couldn't resist!). Perhaps there is something to that, but Trump has never really made his case on why we need The Wall and why we need it now.
There's A Crisis At The Border:
This is an area where Trump is just flat-out lying to make his point. Are there criminals among the people who are sneaking across the border? Probably there is. But illegal immigration is at a 46-year low. Trump recently claimed that this low ebb of illegal crossings was due to his leadership, even though this is part of a decades-long trend. He fear-mongered about the "caravans" coming from Central America, which turned out to be not an invasion at all and was contained by the Border Patrol. He likes to spotlight the families of people who were killed by undocumented immigrants. While any death is tragic, the percentage of crimes of any type committed by illegal immigrants is tiny compared to those committed by citizens. He likes to scream about all the drugs that flow into the United States from Mexico, when in reality, these drugs come in mostly through legal ports of entry, including airports far from any border. Towns and cities along the border report no more crime than any other American city. But the question that Trump can't answer is "why wasn't this a crisis during the last two years?" - During the last two years Republicans controlled both houses of Congress and passed numerous spending bills and appropriations that did not include any funding for A Wall.
It's The Fault of The Democrats:
Just last month, the Senate unanimously passed an appropriations bill that would have funded the remaining parts of the government without money for A Wall. Until the President dug in his heels after being mocked by right-wing radio personalities in December, he signed every other bill (without Wall funding) that came his way. The House, under former Speaker Ryan refused to vote on the same appropriation when he read Trump's angry tweets and now McConnell will not bring to a vote the same bill that had previously passed unanimously. A fair reading is that neither party is very excited about giving Trump his Wall. The Democrats never have been and the Republicans are only going along because they fear Trump's tweets and perhaps getting primaried next year. What you don't hear much of is that back in February 2017 there was a bipartisan agreement to fund The Wall at about five times the current request in exchange for a path to citizenship for DACA enrollees. Trump would not go along with it because it lacked two other things that were the rant du jour back then: eliminating family-based migration (which he denigrated as "chain migration") and the visa lottery. He could have had his Wall almost a year ago. He killed that deal.
The Wall = Border Security:
Trump regularly denigrates his opponents as wanting open borders, not caring about border security or the safety of Americans. This is, of course, ridiculous. He conflates "border security" with "A Wall". While walls and barriers may be part of a complete border security strategy, it's not the only thing and should be considered as part of a considered debate about immigration reform. He has recently taken to claiming that the Democrats' objection is to concrete, so we'll just build a steel Wall.
The Campaign Promise:
Finally, there's the issue of why A Wall is even being discussed. Trump started his campaign for president railing about Mexicans as rapists and murderers. He tapped into xenophobic bigotry to rile up anti-immigrant sentiment among what became his base. The Wall became shorthand for that. It was an applause line designed to get maximum response from rally-goers. Trump was never good at articulating actual policies, but he was a master at telling people what they wanted to hear and converting it into easy-to-remember-and-shout slogans. Of course, saying that Mexico would pay for it ("and like it" he said at least once, which sounds kind of rapey to me) was part of the shtick. Once it became clear that Mexico wasn't ever going to cut us a check, we were treated to the bizarre explanation that Mexico would be paying for The Wall via all the billions that would be raking in from USMCA. To buy that you'd have to forget that USMCA, which is really just NAFTA with some of the dents knocked out and shined up a bit, has not been ratified, carries no guarantee that our balance of trade with Mexico will improve, and even if it does, that increase in cash flow goes to business who will see increased profits. It also requires you to forget that Trump said while campaigning that Mexico would write us a check. (He was once asked how he would compel Mexico to pay - his answer: "Oh I will, and The Wall just got ten feet higher").
There may be valid reasons to erect barriers, but not for this barrier. The great deal maker has shown himself incapable of making a deal. We cannot let the precedent be set of Trump holding the government hostage if he does not get his way.
