There’s a swirl of foreign policy issues coming to a head in Washington right now, all of which have serious domestic implications as well.
First and foremost is the ongoing question of how best to secure our borders against the tide of illegal immigration stressing both our social safety net and law enforcement. Another is the matter of securing our economy at home against the onslaught of unfair foreign competition that has eviscerated U.S. manufacturing jobs over the past several decades.
Let’s start with immigration. We have learned recently that the floodgates of illegal immigration to the U.S. may again be opening up. A “caravan” of immigrants is currently making its way through Mexico toward the American border, following a dangerous route, sometimes piled precariously atop freight trains and sometimes on foot. According to a New York Times report, “They travel in large groups — the current [one] is one of the largest, at about 1,200 participants — in part for protection against the kidnappers, muggers and rapists that stalk the migrant trail.” Their goal is to make it to the U.S. border, where, even if they are detained, they will likely be freed under the American immigration policy of “catch and release.” Many will melt away and head deeper into the U.S., where they will live in the shadows.
This sad procession of humanity is truly painful to read about. It represents all of the accumulated failures of the desperate countries from which its travelers come — Honduras, El Salvador and others — and the faltering country of Mexico through which it passes. No one can fault these weary souls for wanting a better life for themselves and their families. To them, America is like a lifeboat to shores of peace and prosperity. Trouble is, this lifeboat has been overloaded for years with the survivors of oppression and poverty, who threaten to capsize it. Every group of illegals that make it here severely stress our schools, our health care system and, in too many cases, our criminal justice system, especially when those “kidnappers, muggers and rapists” the Times alluded to join the trek northward.
That’s why President Trump’s call for a secure border — including a stronger border wall where necessary and the deployment of U.S. military forces to patrol it — is actually the most humane way to deal with this modern-day exodus. We must continue to press Central American countries to clean up their corruption and lawlessness, and we must keep the pressure on Mexico to secure its own southern border and help stem the flow of illegal immigrants through its territory.