Discussion on Border Control

Border Control
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Border Control
Border control has been one of the major concerns across the United States as a strategy to deter the entry of illegal immigrants, terrorists, and illegal goods into the country. The 9/11 terrorist attack is one of the occurrences that prompted the “border control offensive” in the United States. Besides, the event influenced the government to prioritize illegal immigration along the southwest and northern border. Notably, the northern border is more susceptible to entry of terrorists and illegal immigrants. In the process of preventing illegal immigration while enhancing border security, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) realized the need to address terrorism as a prevalent issue (Slack et al., 2016). As a result, DHS federal executives would interdict terrorists before crossing the border. Through the 2005-2010 strategic plan, the federal government established operational control of the borders. While border control has emerged as a significant concern across the United States, the issue is more prevalent on the southern border based on increased smuggling of goods and illegal immigration.
The United States/Mexico border is the busiest land border globally, with increased encounters between immigrants and law enforcement officers. Statistics indicate that 76,000 immigrants attempt to cross the border monthly (Proctor, 2020). Over the last two decades, prevention through deterrence has been the primary strategy along the U.S/Mexico border. According to NowRasteh (2018), the strategy entails a massive concentration of personnel and resources to enhance security at the port’s access to the United States. During the 1990s, the U.S border patrol implemented prevention through deterrence to deter the entry of illegal immigrants to the United States through the U.S/Mexico border.
President Trump’s administration has focused on political debate and policymaking on the issue of illegal immigrants along the southern border. Following his election, former president Trump issued “border security and immigration enforcement improvements” as an executive order to enhance border security (Proctor, 2020). The government secured the southern border through the order and protected the country against illegal immigration (NowRasteh, 2018). Therefore, the border control agents would deport illegal aliens swiftly. President Trump emphasized that illegal immigration is an issue that has overburdened border agents. According to the former president, the surge of illegal immigration significantly strains the available federal resources.
The federal government established U.S customs and Border Protection to enhance security between ports of entry. Like the southern border, the northern border needs enhanced monitoring to deter illegal immigrants from Canada (The White House, 2017). Over the last three decades, the number of people apprehended for crossing the border illegally has increased dramatically. Although the government enacts security measures, they are not as effective as the southern border. Notably, the United States’ administration focuses more on deterring illegal trade than illegal immigration.
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