In the last generation we’ve moved past a U.S.-Mexico relationship that while friendly on the surface, and demilitarized for the most part, really was not a genuinely cooperative relationship.
ALAN BERSINWalls and barriers alone are insufficient to insure security.
More Alan Bersin Quotes
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It has gone from being a sending country for migrants to a transit country, and increasingly a receiving country for migrants in its own right.
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The work the Mexicans are doing in terms of migration control on Mexico’s southern border is crucial to our own border security.
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And there are places on the border, such as the Arizona desert or the open terrain around the Big Bend in South Texas, where Mother Nature has created her own barrier that is not easily passable. Or if you do pass through it, you are easily detected.
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In large part this is because of the success of policies followed by the United States to create an environment, a peaceful period in history in which economies could grow and countries could benefit.
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Trust and confidence that have been built is not something that should be abandoned without great consideration for the potentially grave consequences to the United States.
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Today, the number of migrants crossing is at a 30-year low. That’s because of years of bipartisan work on this issue.
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I think there’s no question that the barriers, the fences and in certain urban areas, the walls, have had an important effect in terms of increasing the manageability and the security of the border.
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If you build a 50-foot wall, you’ll soon be confronted with a 51-foot ladder.
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We need to realize that the economic situation between Mexico and the United States is not just one in which we trade with one another.
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Not only are the numbers of migrants entering the United States at the lowest levels in a generation, but they are now largely Central American.
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We should be wary, particularly with our closest friends and allies, of breaking down the trust and confidence that lie at the foundation of relationships.
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In the course of 25 years, we have developed a constructive relationship with Mexico that was nonexistent before.
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Most people who live at the border or are familiar with the border know that a Berlin-like wall stretching from San Diego to Brownsville is not necessary. And the costs would be prohibitive.
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For the first time since the second World War, we are not the sole dominant economy in the world.
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People should remember that Mexican migration is now at a net negative.
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