Border Security and Illegal Immigration

Illegal immigration has been an important issue for decades.  There has been a debate over how to solve this issue for the same amount of time.  Some people believe that improved border security is the solution to this problem, and others believe that amnesty is the best solution.  I believe, like another group of people, that a guest work visa program would be the best solution to help lessen this problem.  This would have the least impact on the economy.  Illegal immigration has an impact on the economy.

This video highlights the problems associated with illegal immigration.

 11.3 million illegal immigrants 8.1 million are working.  This makes up about 5.1% of the labor force in the United States.  In the past a work visa program worked pretty well.  In the 1950's there was a Bracero work visa program that drastically reduced the number of illegal immigrants, and this allowed the border patrol to manage the smaller number of illegal immigrants.  Amnesty, like the program Reagan enacted in 1986, only reduces the number of immigrants for a short amount of time.  Border security alone will not solve this problem either.  Since 1992, there has been a 500% increase in border patrol agents and patrol hours.  This has not increased the number of apprehensions at the border.  Border security alone cannot solve the problem of illegal immigration, it must be combined with another program.



Sources
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/the-smart-way-to-stop-illegal-immigration/article/2559393
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/11/19/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s/

Useful Links
https://www.usimmigrationsupport.org/illegal-immigration.html
http://www.visanow.com/immigration-blog/a-brief-history-of-illegal-immigration/
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/topics/border-security