The Case for Strengthening U.S. Border Security

Since the 1980s, illegal immigration has been a contentious issue affecting the United States. Each year, illegal immigration expands the population of the United States and strains public resources and employment opportunities. Though the United States has traditionally held one of the least monitored borders in the world, the need to curtail illegal immigration has necessitated stringent border security measures. Because the high influx of immigration undermines the public welfare by hindering economic mobility, burdening public resources, and reducing social unity, stronger measures must be adopted to further secure the United States border.

Before examining the merits of stricter border control measures, it is important to understand how border control enforcement is currently conducted in the United States. Currently, many agencies work together to prevent unauthorized individuals from entering the United States. The 2006 Securing America’s Borders Act outlines the agencies that are authorized to enact security measures around the United States border. As the Act authorizes, the United States Customs operates the Border Patrol, which is responsible for controlling nearly 7,000 miles of borders between the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Further, the Act authorizes customs and border protection officers, port of entry inspectors, and border patrol agents to screen individuals moving between the United States and foreign borders. Through Congressional authorization, the Border Patrol plays the most significant role in preventing illegal entry into the United States.

Further, the 2006 Securing America’s Borders Act also describes the tools allocated to these authorized personnel to secure the borders. First, Section 104 reauthorizes the use of border patrol checkpoints to monitor the roads that cross between the United States and Mexico. Second, Section 106 of the Act provides for the construction of double- or triple-layered fencing in strategic locations in the Southwest in order to erect a barrier to illegal entrants. Finally, Section 111 allows for improved surveillance technologies, such as the deployment of unmanned drones, to be implemented at the border in order to detect illegal attempts to cross between the United States and Mexico. These combined measures have been used to impede individuals and smugglers who attempt to cross into the United States by foot or vehicle.

The methods that the Border Patrol uses to intercept illegal immigration reflect an overall shift in strategy that has been adopted by United States policymakers. As immigration expert Robert Bach asserts, the United States Border Patrol adopted the philosophy of “prevention through deterrence” during the 1990s by increasing the presence of patrol agents (Bach 3). However, Bach notes that the United States has recently evolved to embrace the “prevention through preemption” philosophy, which calls for more proactive measures to prevent illegal immigrants from crossing the United States border (5). Activities such as enhancing surveillance technologies, dispatching foot patrols, and increasing border screening technologies attempt to enable agents to aggressively identify and prevent efforts to illegally cross the border (5). The shift from deterrence to preemption emerged from historical developments that impacted national immigration policy.

The importance of proactive border control can be understood through the historical context that shaped the current practices. As Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow Edward Alden notes, the United States considered border patrol a low priority and had one of the most relaxed border regulations in the world prior to the 1980s (Alden 108). Yet, following trade liberalization policies during in 1970s, the United States received an increase in immigration, in correlation with the trends brought by free trade (109). However, the relaxed regulations were also conducive to high levels of illegal immigration (109). In response, Congress passed the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, which provided legalization for over 3 million unauthorized immigrants under the condition that increased border security and employment enforcement efforts would be adopted (109). Yet, Alden asserts that the stringent security measures were left unenforced and allowed seasonal migrant workers to take advantage of weak border security during the 1980s and 1990s (109). These initial failures to enforce immigration policy caused occurrences of illegal immigration to become more severe.

Besides enabling illegal immigrants to take advantage of employment opportunities in the United States, the United States’ weak enforcement of immigration laws created major gaps in security. As Alden assesses, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 were a turning point for border security policy (111). A review of the 9/11 attacks revealed that all nineteen of the hijackers involved in the plot held legal visas, despite red flags that should have been reviewed by authorities (111). Further, five of the hijackers had overstayed their visas or violated conditions of their visas (111). Following this review, border security became a primary national security concern and the Customs Service, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and the Coast Guard was merged to form the Department of Homeland Security (111). In consideration of the events of 9/11, the ability of illegal immigrants to pass through the United States border with ease was problematic because it represented a security weakness that terrorists could exploit.

In fact, the broad range of threats that exist in addition to illegal entries explains the importance of increasing resources that are devoted to securing the United States border. Besides deterring illegal immigration, Border Patrol has a broad range of duties it must perform in order to reduce threats to the American public. According to the Department of Justice, the Border Patrol also must prevent drugs, detect agricultural pests, and prevent counterfeit goods from entering the country (Chapter III Securing America’s Borders). In addition to these duties, Border Patrol agents must detect human smuggling and trafficking, arrest individuals with outstanding warrants, and prevent illegal immigrants from entering the United States (Chapter III Securing America’s Borders). These compounded duties often dilute the resources that are allocated toward enforcing immigration policy.

Yet the detrimental consequences of failed border security measures are well documented. Though it doesn’t warrant the same visceral reactions as terrorism, unfettered illegal immigration can also be destructive to society. Outlining the economic costs of illegal immigration, health statistician Jerome Blondelle reports that in a study of nine states, the expense of education, emergency medical care, and incarceration for illegal immigrants averaged $700 annually per middle-income household (Blondelle 328). Further, Blondelle reviews a Harvard study that demonstrated that illegal immigration reduced wages by $1700, or 4 percent, for non-immigrant workers (329). The study revealed that the poorest were affected the most by illegal immigration, experiencing a 7.4 percent reduction in wages because they were more likely to work in occupations that required them to compete with illegal immigrants for jobs (329). Blondelle also noted that high-levels of immigration inhibit immigrants from assimilated, and only 25 percent of non-citizen Hispanics reported speaking English proficiently (332). Further, Blondelle also notes a Harvard study that determined that ethnically diverse communities, including Los Angeles and San Francisco, scored low in civic and communal participation (338). As Blondell’s analysis demonstrates, the consequences of illegal immigration can be far reaching.

Though significant efforts have been made following 9/11 to close gaps in border security, evidence suggests that there are still gaps in security that need to be addressed. As Edward Alden highlights, even with increased border patrol measures, there is still an increased interest among Mexican citizens in immigrating to the United States. As Alden explains, the population growths in Mexico during the 1980s and 1990s combined with a declining economy have increased the desirability of immigration to the United States (Alden 110). During the 1980s there were 1 million interceptions of individuals attempting to illegally enter the United States made by Border Patrol each year (110). However, by the end of the 1990s, this figure increased to 2 million (110). As these figures suggest, the desire of millions of Mexicans and Latin Americans to enter the United States will remain strong as long as there is an economic imbalance between the two countries.

Further, recent figures suggest that United States border security measures lack efficacy in preventing entrance. Though the construction of walls and an increased Border Patrol presence make entrance more difficult, persistent immigrants are not necessarily prevented from entering the United States. According to immigration policy specialist Marc R. Rosenblum, United States border control spending increased from $322 million to $3.8 billion between 1989 and 2010 (Rosenblum 12). Yet, a survey of Mexicans who intended to enter the United States revealed that 92 percent were successful in entering the country at least once (29). Additionally, while the chance of being caught entering the United States increased to 35 percent between 2001 and 2006, it declined to under 20 percent in 2011. Thus, it is important to be constantly vigilant in securing the border in order to consistently decrease the number of illegal entrants.

Also, Rosenblum finds that new tactics that illegal immigrants have adopted for entering the United States will pose a challenge for Border Patrol agents. While the Border Patrol is well funded to monitor checkpoints, there has been an increase in efforts to circumvent current checkpoints and avoid detection by agents. Rosenblum notes that since the 1980s there has been a 10 percent increase in the number of individuals who rely on paid smugglers to enter the United States (Rosenblum 27). Further, a 2009 survey revealed that many illegal entrants plan to use alternative methods of entering the United States illegally, including entering by sea, building tunnels, and stealing the identification of current citizens (34). As the methods of entering the United States illegally become more expansive, greater resources must be allocated to deter and intercept these new methods.

Illegal immigration has become an increasing problem for the United States since the 1980s. Further, the terrorist attacks of 2001 demonstrate the dangers that lapses in border security can pose to the public. Thus, it is important to close the gaps in security between the United States and Mexico. As analysis of the impact of illegal immigration demonstrates, a large influx of illegal immigrants can hinder society by burdening public welfare systems, depressing wages for the poorest citizens, and creating barriers to assimilation and civic cooperation between citizens and non-citizens. In order to reduce the detrimental impact of illegal immigration and weakened security in border areas, greater resources should be devoted in closing the security gaps that allow millions of individuals to slip through the borders undetected.

Works Cited

Alden, Edward. “Immigration and Border Control.” Cato Journal 32.1 (2012): 107-24. ProQuest.

Bach, Robert. “Transforming Border Security: Prevention First.” Homeland Security Affairs 1.1 (2005): 1-15. ProQuest.

Blondell, Jerome. “Adverse Impacts of Massive and Illegal Immigration in the United States.” The Journal of Social, Political, and Economic Studies 33.3 (2008): 328-350. ProQuest.

Department of Justice. “Chapter III Securing America’s Borders.” Department of Justice. 1995.

Rosenblum, Marc R. Border Security: Immigration Enforcement Between Ports of Entry. Congressional Research Service.

United States. Cong. Senate. 109th Congress, 2d Session. S. 2454, Securing America’s Borders Act [introduced in the U.S. Senate; 16 March 2006]. 109th Cong., 2d sess. Congressional Bills, GovTrack.