Eviscerated: The Betrayal of Our Southern Border

In general, I've been a strong supporter of the current administration's foreign policy initiatives, particularly the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, as I understood and accepted the arguments of the threats each of these counties posed.

Afghanistan was the unabashed and de facto home of al Qaeda and its Taliban supporters, and Iraq, though a harder sell to the American people, made sense on a number of levels for our national security.

And so I'm stunned that President Bush has taken the extraordinary step of weakening our nation's security by advocating a loosening of immigration restrictions, a move that makes sense neither from the perspectives of commerce or security.

Our porous borders are this nation's single greatest national security threat, particularly our southern border with Mexico. 2 million of the estimated 3 million people that cross the border illegally each year do so without getting caught. We're not talking just a handful of illegals, but the equivalent of 160 12,500-man military divisions, larger than Saddam's Army at the height of full mobilization. Red Dawn, anyone?

Even when peaceful in intent, these huge numbers are over-burdening parts of our country's infrastructure, particularly our social services. In California alone the cost of treating illegals has shut down 60 emergency rooms, and in New Jersey, the state estimates it hemorrhages $200 million each year treating illegals. With astronomical health costs and the re-importation of previously vanquished and newly emerging diseases, the cost of supporting 10-25 million illegal aliens far outweighs any "cheap labor" arguments.

In addition to illegal aliens, terrorist groups are thought to be using the poorly guarded southern border as an entry point, and Central and South American street gangs are using the border to smuggle in gang members for violent drug operations, such as MS13, which has rapidly expanded to 31 states.

I've supported President Bush and much of the Republican Party platform, but by enabling and even encouraging the exposure of our southern border, he is preparing the United States to be eviscerated by forces both accidental and intentional.

Note: Cross-posted to the Blogger News Network.

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