Magnus McFaulds
Lantern Staff
On Friday, Feb. 15, 2019, President Donald J. Trump declared a national emergency to get the funding required to pay for the Mexico, American border wall he proposed in 2016 while he was running for president. By declaring a national emergency, Trump is now able to move money from any department within the government and out of any government funded projects, to be able to fund the border wall.
What does this national emergency mean for the American people? The border has had increases in security since 1980 when President Ronald Reagan was in office. Since this time of which is the first noted time border security was spoken about in way of increasing border security has increased significantly and incited the passing of the 2006 Secure Fence Act, which gave funding for a 700-mile border fence signed by at the time President George W. Bush, who is quoted by the New York Times as saying, “It is an important step toward immigration reform.” The act won with a majority vote of 80 to 19 with former President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, both voting in favor of the act.
The border covers 1,954 miles with roughly 1000 of those miles covered with terrain that acts as a natural border. Since Trump started his campaign, he focused his political rhetoric on building a border wall, bringing a far harsher approach with the BBC News stating that all the claims he has made about an increase of crime and drugs coming across the border had the sufficient evidence.
So is the border wall worth it or is it too much?
“I think we need to be smart but also welcoming to people,” sophomore Suzanne Skiles said. “America has always been the land of the free and that’s why we started, for freedom, that’s why America was founded.”
Some voters may think Trump is going too far, declaring a state of emergency.
“Every president has their priorities, and they do what they can even if a lot of people don’t agree with it to push what they want to get done,” sophomore Michael Manley said. “He is definitely pulling out all the stops, it seems maybe excessive, but we also saw Obama Care pushed through and some good came from that.”
As of today, 1.3 billion dollars has been put towards the border wall with a further 1.6 billion dollars put towards projects as the border as reported by PolitiFact. Trump, however, still moved on with the declaration of the national emergency.
“Has the government considered less expensive, yet also effective, uses of technology, such as drones and satellites to monitor and intervene with issues regarding our border?” Associate Professor of Economics Kris Estes asked. “This is a question any tax paying American should be asking–a lot of money will be spent on this wall? Could the government use the money to increase border security and surveillance so as to interdict anyone who may be crossing the border illegally? This could lead to less money being spent and get more support from the American people.”
The most notable thing anyone can take from this national emergency and border wall is that it is not a new topic and the country as reported by the BBC News. It has been pushed since Reagan was in office. It is something that both parties have agreed needs to be prioritized and slow illegal immigration at the border.
