If you own a radio or television, you have probably heard about the crisis at our border with Mexico. Depending on which report you may have heard, anywhere from eight to eleven million people have entered the United States illegally, since President Biden took office. The Democrats’ open border policies have created multiple problems, the details of which are also common knowledge.
The crisis adversely affects everyone it touches; with the exception of terrorists and criminal cartels. It has become a major issue for the 2024 presidential election. Until recently, President Biden has been unwilling to do anything meaningful to correct the underlying policies that have created the problem. The Democrats in the US House of Representatives and Senate have steadfastly refused to return the control of our borders to the United States’ government. In fact, President Biden and his fellow Democrats have impeded it.
It is an election year, and President Biden’s approval ratings are in the tank. So, he has approached the Mexican government, requesting assistance with controlling the flood of illegal migrants from and through Mexico to the United States. He met with Mexican President Lopez Obrador while they were attending a conference in November, and they spoke on the telephone in late December. They met again at the border on January 6th. He also sent a delegation to Mexico for negotiations. No meaningful results have been forthcoming.
On the contrary, President Lopez Obrador announced at a press conference on January 5th that Mexico would not help us with border control unless we:
give Latin American and Caribbean countries $20 billion, suspend our blockade of Cuba, remove all sanctions against Venezuela, and grant resident alien status to about 10 million migrants who are currently living in the United States illegally. (paraphrased) [1]
Some commentators and legislators have taken exception to Lopez Obrador’s remarks. They have pointed out that the Mexican government has no business trying to influence American foreign and domestic policy.
Well … yup. That is exactly what Mexico is doing. However, please remember that we have done the same thing to Mexico, and we are doing it to other countries as we speak, (Ukraine and Israel for example). It is sometimes called diplomacy; especially if we are the ones doing it.
We don’t like it when another country blackmails us – do we. It might be a good thing for Americans to reflect on that. It could be one reason why so many people around the world don’t like us.
That does not mean we have to take President Lopez Obrador’s remarks lying down. Of course, the Biden Administration will probably grant concessions to Mexico. Caving in is what they do. By contrast, Donald Trump wants to do a wholesale roundup of illegal migrants and deport them. That may result in violence. The logistics of it are daunting, considering the number of people in question. Further, the courts have dictated that they are entitled to due process before deportation. So, what are we to do?
The problem of illegal migration is due in part to a broken US immigration system. Therefore, each of us must resolve to engage in a campaign of phone calls, letter writing, and email urging our elected representatives to engage in a bipartisan effort to hammer out comprehensive immigration reform.
Lamp in a Corner is strongly in favor of legal immigration. Nevertheless, immigration from failed states where active terrorism is taking place must be curtailed. There should be no discrimination regarding race, religion, age, gender, or country of origin, provided that the immigrants are willing to honestly forsake their allegiance to any other country except the United States.
Before the Democrats’ open borders policies created the current crisis, it was possible to deal with illegal migration by increasing the size of the border patrol, building barriers, advanced surveillance technology, tough monitoring of border crossings, and the like. Although we must not stop these efforts, things have gotten so bad that they are no longer adequate. It is necessary now to temporarily close the border with Mexico. Airports and seaports must be closed to the movement of persons to and from Mexico. The closure must remain in effect until the Mexican government realizes that it is in Mexico’s best interest to assist us with bringing the illegal migration, trafficking in drugs and human beings, and infiltration by terrorists and criminal organizations to an end.
Closing the border will result in severe economic disruption. Unfortunately, ordinary people like those who live in Mexico and commute to work in the US will suffer. American families will experience shortages of consumer goods resulting in higher prices. To mitigate the economic consequences to American families and agribusiness, very limited exceptions may be made for trucks, airplanes, and ships carrying produce, raw materials, and finished goods, and so forth; provided each vehicle and vessel entering the US is inspected.
We must remove the incentives that encourage people to migrate to the US illegally. The US Constitution must be amended to prevent children who are born in the US of foreign parents from natural born citizenship. Only children born in the US of parents who are American citizens may be granted US citizenship. The laws governing granting asylum must be repealed or rewritten to prevent abuse.
We must not provide a free public education to the children of illegal migrants. Illegal migrants must not have access to health care unless they pay for it – including hospital treatment for the medically indigent. They must be ineligible for any form of public assistance (welfare). Businesses that knowingly employ illegal migrants must be closed down. Landlords who knowingly rent dwellings to illegal migrants must have their property confiscated. It must be illegal to sell real property to illegal migrants, and the real property must be confiscated. States must be prohibited from issuing drivers’ licenses and identification cards to illegal migrants.
Foreigners must never be allowed to assume that they can enter the United States to conduct criminal activity without severe consequences. It is impossible to talk about all the contingencies here. However, a few suggestions include:
Any illegal migrant or legal resident alien convicted of committing a felony in the US must serve a lengthy prison sentence without possibility of parole before deportation. The sentence should be doubled for a violent felony resulting in injury to a victim and life without parole if the victim dies. Any person who is not a US citizen should be sentenced to life without parole if they import illegal drugs or sell them in the United States. Participation in organized criminal activity by illegal migrants or legal resident aliens should be subject mandatory prison sentences without parole before deportation. Conviction for illegal reentry into the US after deportation should receive a mandatory prison sentence without parole prior to deportation.
These measures may seem harsh and inhumane to some. We take no pleasure in suggesting them. It is important to realize that the humanitarian crisis at the border is also inhumane, and that the only way to end it is to take the actions necessary to discourage people from trying to enter the US illegally. The border crisis is also eroding the rule of law, which is the glue that holds our society together. Without it we will eventually see a breakdown of the social order – anarchy.
We are not proposing measures that are crimes against humanity. We are proposing that the United States of America take the actions necessary to stop what is the equivalent of an invasion by a foreign army of 10 million. Americans are the most generous people on earth. We openhandedly share with those less fortunate. There are some who want to take advantage of our kindness.
When compared with much of the rest of the world, Americans have a high standard of living. We who have earned a high standard of living by the hard work of our own hands, and those who have it by accident of birth, must learn a hard truth. If you do not have the will to defend what you have, it will be taken away from you by others. We are asking you to decide to survive … before it is too late.
