By Cameron Tabler, Contributing Opinion
As of this writing, we are on the 35th day of the government shutdown, and it seems as if there is no end in sight. This is all because the Republican Party and President Donald Trump will not accept that a majority of Americans do not want a wall and any budget proposed with money for a wall will not be passed in the House, creating a mess that is grounded in fear and xenophobia.
Illegal immigration along the border has decreased significantly since 2000, with 1,600,000 migrants being arrested by border patrol in 2000 and only 400,000 arrested in 2018, according to the US Customs and Border Protection Agency. The Washington Post reported that most undocumented immigrants come in through airports or seaports, meaning a wall would do little to stop immigrants from coming in and overstaying visas. If Trump really cared about illegal immigration, he would turn to these areas and create solutions instead of ignoring them in favor of rallying his base.
“Among all Americans, 58 percent oppose building a wall between the U.S. and Mexico, compared to 41 percent who favor the policy,” said an article published by the Public Religious Research Institute. Therefore, the Democrats are stopping the funding of a wall because the American people do not want it, not because they are obstructionists.
The Republican Party and Trump must realize that punishing the American people in order to punish others will not work. Even Republican President Ronald Reagan knew that “the country was fundamentally open to those who wanted to join us here,” and he said he believed the U.S.-Mexico border could be “something other than the location for a fence” in a televised debate in 1964.
“I will build a great wall, … and I will make Mexico pay for that wall.” This promise was made at the announcement of Trump’s presidential campaign but has failed. The reason the government is shut down is because Trump could not keep this promise, asking Americans to pay $5 billion to the government for a wall that we were told would not be weighing on the taxpayer’s wallet.
If the shutdown continues it could have effects on our daily lives and our economy, as it “could cut economic growth by 1 percentage point,” according to New York Federal Reserve President John Williams. The Food and Drug Administration has stopped conducting some routine inspections, the National Science Foundation must stop giving grants, Section 8 vouchers will stop going out to low-income households to pay for housing and much more according to the New York Times.
This shutdown is nothing more than a show; there is no reason for it, and if it continues, all it will do is harm the American people. Hopefully, the Republican Party can see the struggles that this has created and will step up to create real solutions and get life back on track. Let us pray for the hundreds of thousands of workers who have no income right now and are relying on the generosity of others to survive, and volunteer if you can.
