On the first night of the Democrat National Convention, Michelle Obama accused President Trump of placing children at the border in “cages.” As the former first lady knows, these “cages” – actually, holding areas made of chain link fences — were in fact built during her husband’s administration: the Obama-Biden administration. Many of the photos that were widely disseminated by the news media in efforts to excoriate the Trump administration were taken in 2014, two years prior to Trump’s election.
As a resident of a border state, I am more than willing to engage in this discussion with the other side of the aisle. Joe Biden and the Democrats are living in the past when it comes to our border. They dream of returning to an era of lax immigration policies that didn’t work then, and will assuredly not work now.
Border security is national security. We have seen the mass migrations that have occurred around the world in recent years and the trouble that inevitably follows. President Trump continues to deliver on building the border wall despite heavy opposition from Democratic Party leaders who previously supported building barriers on our southern border. Nearly 300 miles have already been built and a promising 400 miles will be completed by year’s end.
Since 2015, when Donald Trump promised to build his “big, beautiful wall” on the United States’ southern border, Democrats and the media have attacked the idea as xenophobic and unworkable. Here on the border, however, we can see that the progress on the wall, coupled with the president’s threats to impose tariffs on Mexico, has finally produced action. For the first time in my memory, the Mexican military and law enforcement are properly patrolling their side of the border.
Legal immigrants are part of the fabric of our nation. They come to the U.S. to enjoy limitless opportunities and to live out the American Dream. They come for faith, family, and freedom – and America delivers. Legal immigrants, who chose to enter our country the right way, should not have to compete for jobs and other opportunities with people who enter illegally.
Merit-based immigration is also important. When our country faces shortages of doctors, nurses, or other skilled workers, we need to be able to find a way to welcome them to America. For areas that have seasonal labor needs, such as the agriculture sector in Yuma, Ariz., controlled guest worker programs that do not include citizenship or chain migration should be developed and promoted.
But Democrats have decided they want something much different. They want open borders, decriminalization of illegal border crossings, and amnesty for over 11 million people. They want to offer free health care and free education to illegal immigrants, and all at the expense of American taxpayers.
The European Union was the great mass migration experiment for open borders. Since the Obama-Biden administration, and the passing of the Brexit referendum, we have seen leaders of many European countries voice interest in leaving the EU over their open border policies.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the nations of Europe, including France and Germany, rushed to close their borders. Around the world, countries moved to secure their borders to contain the pandemic. They realized that border security is vital to public health.
As a family physician in a border state, I have seen diseases once thought to be eradicated in our country, such as tuberculosis, making a comeback – primarily due to the ineptitude and failures of previous administrations to stop illegal immigrants from entering our country.
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again: Border security is national security.
We cannot afford to go back to the failed Obama-Biden era policies of the past when it comes to our border, our security, and our nation’s sovereignty.
