Rep. Gaetz: Border walls work, and Democrats know it

Matt Gaetz
Updated
As our porous border continues creating and exacerbating humanitarian crises, it would be immoral not to build a wall, writes Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.

The clock is ticking, and Congress must quickly develop comprehensive border security legislation. America is waiting. But first, Democrats must realize something simple — something the American people already understand: We need a wall.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dismisses a border wall as “immoral.” This claim is brazenly false.

Consider Turkey, Hungary and Israel, which experienced dramatic reductions in illegal crossings since building walls. Israel’s illegal crossings, because of the wall and other policies, dropped by 99 percent!

In the parts of America where walls have already been built, they have been incredibly successful. In San Diego, illegal crossings plummeted 95 percent after building a wall and instituting several other personnel and technology changes.

President Barack Obama’s own Border Patrol chief, Mark Morgan, recently said: “I cannot think of a legitimate argument why anyone would not support the wall as part of a multilayered border security issue.”

Prominent Democrats — including Chuck Schumer, Joe Biden and Obama — supported legislation in 2006 for walls, technology and other measures, resulting in the construction of a physical barrier at Yuma. Illegal crossings into Yuma dropped by 90 percent.

A concrete wall provides a barrier between the United States and Mexico in San Diego, California.
A concrete wall provides a barrier between the United States and Mexico in San Diego, California.

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Democrats know walls work. Naturally, many prominent Democrats have physical barriers guarding their mansions and their gated communities.

Apparently, walls are only “immoral” when they protect regular citizens, and when a man named Trump is the president.

As our porous border continues creating and exacerbating humanitarian crises — child trafficking among migrants, drugs and crime flowing into America — it would be immoral not to secure our borders and build a wall.

This is not a left or right issue, nor even a political issue. It is a commonsense issue. It is time we fulfill our promise, and deliver what our country needs and what American citizens deserve. It is time to build the wall.

Republican Matt Gaetz represents Florida’s 1st congressional district.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rep. Gaetz: Border walls work, and Democrats know it