Yet when the Government Accountability Office issued a comprehensive report last year on border security, it noted that Customs and Border Protection could not assess the efficacy of those barriers, having developed no metrics to do so. No wonder that when CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan submitted 18 pages of written testimony to Congress on border security last spring, he devoted just a few paragraphs to what he called “physical barriers.” He said they had “enhanced” the agency’s overall capability in securing the border, but offered no evidence. It’s not that a huge new border wall is immoral, as Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) contends. By contrast, a surge in hiring additional Border Patrol agents could deliver more bang for the security buck. The existing border fencing, 654 miles of it, is generally in places that make sense as a deterrent to illegal crossings in high-traffic areas.

Source: Washington Post February 02, 2019 00:00 UTC