Republicans are trying to make the Mexican border a political issue this election. Let’s investigate how to make a stable situation:
The main causes of people crossing the border illegally is the following:
- There are few legal pathways for Mexicans to work in the United States.
- There are more low-skill jobs (which means you don’t need special training to do them) than people able and willing to do them in the United States, but many people in Mexico are willing and able to do them.
- Relative incomes between the US and Mexico, as the disparity grows, border crossings increase.
- Relative safety in the US vs Mexico. This is caused by income inequality and the drug war.
Here are the realistic solutions to these situations:
So, if we wanted to reduce illegal border crossings from Mexico, we could have a legal pathway for Mexicans to work in the United States at any job. That would end the need to cross the border illegally without harming the US economy. This is the only realistic way to solve the first two points.
For the third point, either see Mexican incomes approach that of the United States or have a severe recession in the United States.
For relative safety, we need to end the drug war, which will significantly shut off the flow of money to violent cartels.
But Republicans are not interested in solutions. They want a police state.