There is a well-known aphorism: Fences make good neighbors. With a fence, it’s less likely you’ll have to hire an attorney because your dog bit the neighbor’s kid.

You won’t have to clean up your own yard because your neighbor’s dog made a mess there. There are real costs to not having a fence which often far outweigh the cost of building one. Recently, the Justice Department released statistics showing that illegal immigrants are committing crimes at a much higher rate than American citizens. There have been high profile cases, e.g. the murder of Kate Steinle in San Francisco, which have illustrated the problem. So-called immigration activists have claimed these are isolated instances and do not reflect on most “immigrants” . We now have proof that this is not true.

Building a wall would be cost effective in the long run by reducing the cost of enforcement of the border, reducing law enforcement costs in general, and reducing welfare, education and healthcare costs.

A wall would, obviously, also increase the nation’s security. The Democrats have no legitimate argument opposing the wall. What they do have is a strategy, based on identity politics, of importing those who they believe will vote for Democrats in the future, no matter what the human or economic cost to American citizens.

Eugene Comiskey, Tryon, NC.