by Ben Marquis
Since the day that he first announced his candidacy, Donald Trump has
repeatedly insisted that his presidency would oversee the construction
of a wall along the country’s southern border to secure the nation from
illegal immigration and other criminal activity, like the trafficking of
drugs.
Now, after Trump has been in office for nearly a full year, The Wall Street Journal
reported that it had received a document from the Department of
Homeland Security that outlined how the administration sought roughly
$18 billion over 10 years to construct approximately 700 miles of new
border barriers, which would more than double the already existing 654
miles of border wall
According to Breitbart,
the administration is actually asking for about $33 billion over 10
years to fund a variety of border security measures, of which the wall
is merely one part.
Roughly half of the requested funds would go toward hiring more Border Patrol
officers, installing surveillance towers and other technology, and the
construction and maintenance of roads in the border region. Notably,
that $18 billion over 10 years for the wall works out to just $1.8
billion per year, or about a penny out of each $20 spent by the federal
government. The amount is also consistent with the $1.6 billion already
approved by Congress for 2018 to be spent on increased border security.
Furthermore, Breitbart pointed out that “the wall’s cost would be
offset by a reduced northward flow of illegals and drugs, so cutting the
federal government’s cost for welfare, unemployment and policing.”
Of course, Democrats who couldn’t care less about the costs of
federal programs when they hold the majority — not to mention the
national debt or budget deficits — are now feigning outrage at how much
the proposed border wall and increased border security will cost taxpayers.
However, $18 billion over 10 years for a border wall sounds like a
steal of a deal when compared with how much illegal immigrants are
estimated to cost American taxpayers on an annual basis.
In September, FAIR,
the Federation for American Immigration Reform, released the results of
a study it conducted into just how much illegal immigrants cost
taxpayers every year, and the figure the group reached is nothing short
of astounding.
Contrary to popular claims from Democrats that illegal immigrants pay
enough in taxes to cover any burdens they may impose on taxpayers, FAIR
found that the situation was actually wildly out of balance on the
local, state and federal level.
Using a widely-agreed-upon estimate of 12.5 million illegal immigrants
in the country, it was determined that those illegals — plus their
estimated 4.2 million citizen children — cost taxpayers about $134.9
billion annually. That number breaks down to about $45.8 billion on the
federal level and $88.9 billion on the state and local level.
Meanwhile, it is estimated that those same illegals only contribute
about $18.9 billion in total taxes paid — $15.4 billion federal and $3.5
billion state and local — leaving a grand total annual burden of
approximately $116 billion on American taxpayers.
Thus, the annual cost of Trump’s proposed border wall expansion is
quite literally only 1.5 percent of what Americans are already paying
every year to cover the costs imposed by illegal immigrants.
For what is but a fraction of current spending levels, the country can
not only significantly reduce illegal entry into the country, but also
reduce the amount of crime,
illicit drugs and human trafficking that add untold costs to society,
with the building of Trump’s border wall for a mere $1.8 billion per
year.
Please share this on Facebook and Twitter to spread the word that
Trump’s proposed border wall will only cost a fraction of what American
taxpayers already spend every year in dealing with illegal immigration.