This is what is on my mind. . . .Donald Trump’s most consistent campaign promise — to build a wall on the United States’ southern border to keep immigrants out — will be a waste of time and money, the head of the Customs and Border Protection agency told ABC News in a final warning just days before leaving office.“I think that anyone who’s been familiar with the southwest border and the terrain … kind of recognizes that building a wall along the entire southwest border is probably not going to work,” Gil Kerlikowske, the commissioner of the CBP under President Barack Obama since 2014, said shortly before leaving office last Friday.Over the course of the race to the White House, Trump’s wall idea became more than a simple policy proposal.Repeatedly featuring in Trump’s speeches and the chants of his supporters, the idea of the wall in many ways came to capture the zeitgeist of his campaign.
And it’s an idea that persisted through the race and afterward, even as other proposals were altered or dropped.Just 37 percent of Americans support building a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico, according to an ABC News/Washington Post poll released last week.Kerlikowske said that supporters of the wall are missing the real issue when it comes to the immigration inflows that they are concerned about.“[Immigrants] can come right up to our ports of entry. All our ports of entry, of course, are open. That’s where we have our commerce,” he told ABC News’ Brian Ross. “People can come up to those ports of entry, as they are doing now, and turn themselves in and ask for whatever laws they feel will protect them.”In his wall-building pledge, Trump vowed to do it on the cheap.“I would build a great wall — and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me — and I’ll build them very inexpensively,” he said during his campaign launch.
But Kerlikowske said he didn’t “think this was feasible” or “the smartest way to use taxpayer money on infrastructure.”“When we look at the cost — and we have about 600 miles of fencing now — we look at the maintenance and the upkeep, we know how incredibly difficult it is,” he said.He took time to highlight the work of his agency during his tenure, praising the “21,000 border patrol agents [and] the 24,000 Customs and Border Protection officers” and noting that “not that many years ago, we had 1.6 million people coming across the border.”And it’s because of those employees and those declining numbers, Kerlikowske said, that he’d “call the border far more secure today.”“But if we say, you know, ‘What is a secure border?’ I think that definition is in the eye of beholder,” he said.“Does it mean nobody can get in ever? Does it mean 400,000 is too many but 1.6 million — compared to 1.6 million?”
I have said this before about Bob, Republican Mistakes Like Trump shutting down the government even while he holds all three branches of government somehow becomes a “Lack of cooperation” True “cant see eye to eye failure of negotiations” becomes " The Dems won’t agree to anything"
Bob this isn’t an impasse This is Trump taking the Government hostage to his Stump Speech chant. Something even he didn’t believe in until Rush Limbaugh and Anne Coulter embarrassed him.800,000 Federal workers and Americans held hostage to support Trumps ego
We already have hundreds of miles of steel plank walls and other barricades, plus fences, rivers, cliffs, and more spent on ancient tech, is idiotic. NOT as idiotic as Bonespurs wanting something to paint his name on. How about a cell with padded walls for him to write on, he loves magic markers to sign his name. Redrum.
There is absolutely no need for the shutdown. There was and is no crisis at the border. To call it a crisis is a lie, pure and simple. The shutdown is in the lap of one individual who is using the entire government as a hostage. This sort of behavior ought to be illegal.
Frankfreak over 5 years ago
Copied from a friend.
This is what is on my mind. . . .Donald Trump’s most consistent campaign promise — to build a wall on the United States’ southern border to keep immigrants out — will be a waste of time and money, the head of the Customs and Border Protection agency told ABC News in a final warning just days before leaving office.“I think that anyone who’s been familiar with the southwest border and the terrain … kind of recognizes that building a wall along the entire southwest border is probably not going to work,” Gil Kerlikowske, the commissioner of the CBP under President Barack Obama since 2014, said shortly before leaving office last Friday.Over the course of the race to the White House, Trump’s wall idea became more than a simple policy proposal.Repeatedly featuring in Trump’s speeches and the chants of his supporters, the idea of the wall in many ways came to capture the zeitgeist of his campaign.
Frankfreak over 5 years ago
And it’s an idea that persisted through the race and afterward, even as other proposals were altered or dropped.Just 37 percent of Americans support building a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico, according to an ABC News/Washington Post poll released last week.Kerlikowske said that supporters of the wall are missing the real issue when it comes to the immigration inflows that they are concerned about.“[Immigrants] can come right up to our ports of entry. All our ports of entry, of course, are open. That’s where we have our commerce,” he told ABC News’ Brian Ross. “People can come up to those ports of entry, as they are doing now, and turn themselves in and ask for whatever laws they feel will protect them.”In his wall-building pledge, Trump vowed to do it on the cheap.“I would build a great wall — and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me — and I’ll build them very inexpensively,” he said during his campaign launch.
Frankfreak over 5 years ago
But Kerlikowske said he didn’t “think this was feasible” or “the smartest way to use taxpayer money on infrastructure.”“When we look at the cost — and we have about 600 miles of fencing now — we look at the maintenance and the upkeep, we know how incredibly difficult it is,” he said.He took time to highlight the work of his agency during his tenure, praising the “21,000 border patrol agents [and] the 24,000 Customs and Border Protection officers” and noting that “not that many years ago, we had 1.6 million people coming across the border.”And it’s because of those employees and those declining numbers, Kerlikowske said, that he’d “call the border far more secure today.”“But if we say, you know, ‘What is a secure border?’ I think that definition is in the eye of beholder,” he said.“Does it mean nobody can get in ever? Does it mean 400,000 is too many but 1.6 million — compared to 1.6 million?”
DrDon1 over 5 years ago
Is Gorrell’s concern sincere? Or is it “misplaced?” Afterall, it is the American citizenry who are suffering from #45’s “Shutdown!”
feverjr Premium Member over 5 years ago
…and why didn’t this get done when he had his own House….. it wasn’t a national emergency until now…. hmmm ….. Mueller’s getting close
Radish the wordsmith over 5 years ago
The Trump shutdown of the Trump govt is 100% on Trump.
JHayes over 5 years ago
I have said this before about Bob, Republican Mistakes Like Trump shutting down the government even while he holds all three branches of government somehow becomes a “Lack of cooperation” True “cant see eye to eye failure of negotiations” becomes " The Dems won’t agree to anything"
Bob this isn’t an impasse This is Trump taking the Government hostage to his Stump Speech chant. Something even he didn’t believe in until Rush Limbaugh and Anne Coulter embarrassed him.800,000 Federal workers and Americans held hostage to support Trumps ego
Dtroutma over 5 years ago
We already have hundreds of miles of steel plank walls and other barricades, plus fences, rivers, cliffs, and more spent on ancient tech, is idiotic. NOT as idiotic as Bonespurs wanting something to paint his name on. How about a cell with padded walls for him to write on, he loves magic markers to sign his name. Redrum.
Daeder over 5 years ago
It’s not a “border wall impasse”, it’s Individual 1 at an impasse with reality.
cdward over 5 years ago
There is absolutely no need for the shutdown. There was and is no crisis at the border. To call it a crisis is a lie, pure and simple. The shutdown is in the lap of one individual who is using the entire government as a hostage. This sort of behavior ought to be illegal.
trivers over 5 years ago
Never have we had a president who pouts and throws a hissy fit when he doesn’t get his way.
braindead Premium Member over 5 years ago
YOUR GUY, Gorrell!
.
It’s all grief. Nothing good.
.
#TraitorTrump
Kubby56 over 5 years ago
Are you by any chance from South Texas ? I doubt it because I am , and I see I see it every day ! The third world is coming , do not doubt me!
john.maldaner over 5 years ago
#ShumerShutdown