We Need a Border Wall

First of all, we cannot simply surrender to alien invasion, because it is painfully clear that illegal immigration has already had catastrophic effects on our nation and poses a clear and present danger to our future! In short, we need to protect our borders, and as Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer said: Fences Work, that's why people have them around their houses, it forces people who want to enter their home to "Knock on the door." Illegal Immigration is a very serious problem in America today. Now don't get me wrong, immigration in it self is a great thing, but not when it is done illegally. That is why I stand firmly resolved, That the United States federal government should substantially change its policy on illegal immigration Observation 1. Definitions Illegal - Against law: contravening a specific law, especially a criminal law. Immigration - Arrival of settlers in new country: the act of entering a new country to settle permanently. Substantial - considerable: considerable in amount, extent, value, or importance Observation 2. Harms: Illegal Immigration is ruining America TheBorderfenceproject organization - Illegal immigration is ruining our economy (2005) "This colonization is literally swamping our jails, our judicial system, our schools, our hospitals, our healthcare clinics, our entry-level workforce and our welfare rolls... with dire results. Because many of these illegals send as much as 75% of their illicitly earned "black-market" wages back to their "home" countries, this wave of alien workers is strip-mining our economy. Those dollars are being shipped south of the border -- never to be seen in the American economy again." Docs journal - Illegal aliens threaten U.S. medical system, Docs journal reports hospitals being closed, previously vanquished diseases being spread March 13, 2005 According to Madeleine Pelner Cosman's study, 84 California hospitals are closing their doors as a direct result of the rising number of illegal aliens and their non-reimbursed tax on the system. Further evidence will be brought up in the 2 AC OBSERVATION 3. The GOAL of the US Federal Government today toward illegal immigration is to build a limited fence on the Mexican border, USA TODAY, 26 Oct 2006, "Bush signs bill to build 700-mile fence on US-Mexico border," http://www.usatoday.com... "President Bush this morning signed into law a bill authorizing the federal government to install fencing, cameras, motion sensors and other types of barriers to stem illegal immigration along 700 miles of the U.S.-Mexican border." OBSERVATION 4. The Status Quo fence effort is failing in 2 ways: FAILURE 1: Current fences on the border are few and feeble Tyche Hendricks (Staff Writer), 26 Feb 2006, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE, "Border security or boondoggle?" http://www.sfgate.com... "Fencing of some kind already exists along 106 miles of the border, mostly near cities, including San Diego, El Paso and Nogales, Ariz. Most of it consists of welded panels of corrugated steel recycled from portable landing strips the Army used in Vietnam. Elsewhere, the international line varies from a few strands of barbed wire tacked to wooden fence posts to a winding river where egrets and roseate spoonbills forage." FAILURE 2: U.S. –Canadian borders remain wide open US Senators call for more security at Canadian border THE CANADIAN PRESS, Sep 28, 2007, Beth Gorham "It's so hard to believe there's been so little progress in plugging these gaping security holes," Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, a Republican, told a Capitol Hill hearing. "They're simply wide open, waiting to be crossed by anyone carrying anything, even a dirty bomb or a suitcase-type nuclear device." OBSERVATION 4. SOLVENCY. The complete border fence should be the first priority in our approach to reducing illegal immigration. Prof. Jan C. Ting (Former Assistant Commissioner of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, Senior Fellow of the Foreign Policy Research Institute, professor of Law at Temple Univ. Beasley School of Law), 2005, "Immigration, National Security, and the Need for a Border Fence," p. 7 The fence is the essential element in any plan to limit illegal immigration across our border. The southern border is the first priority because of the large numbers of illegal entrants compared to our northern border. CIS: Center for immigration studies "Border Enforcement. Despite significant increases in funding in recent years, efforts at the border are still inadequate. At any given time, there are perhaps 1,800 Border Patrol agents along more than 2,000 miles of border with Mexico. The Border Patrol needs to be at least double its current size and the border needs a system of fences and other barriers to help the agents in their work." OBSERVATION 6. Mexican and Canadian border fencing produces multiple ADVANTAGES ADVANTAGE 1: Crime reduction: The experience with the San Diego fence shows that border areas are liberated from drug smugglers and criminals, with a dramatic reduction in illegal immigration. Casey Wian (CNN reporter), 26 Oct 2006, "Lou Dobbs Tonight," CNN transcript, (brackets added) http://transcripts.cnn.com... (brackets added) "Ten years ago, before this fence was built, it probably wouldn't have been safe for us to be standing here. This area [the border near San Diego] was in the absolute control of drug and illegal alien smugglers. Robberies, rapes, murders even happened here on a regular basis. But now, because of this double fencing, the Border Patrol is in firm control of this region." ADVANTAGE 2: Foundation for the future: The fence is needed as a first step toward all other immigration reforms. Prof. Ting, who in the context of this evidence is referring back to his recommendation of a complete 2000-mile border fence that we cited earlier, said in 2005: "Immigration, National Security, and the Need for a Border Fence," p. 8 "The fence is essential whether or not we favor President Bush's guest worker plan, and whether or not we favor reform of our legal immigration programs. Without the fence to control illegal immigration, no reform of immigration is possible. Any reform will fail under the rising tide of illegal immigration and the dangers that accompany it."