I'm going to lay this out one point at a time:
1. The Cost: Trump first estimated it would cost anywhere between $4 and $12 billion, and the numbers keep changing. His idea was to build a 2,000-mile wall that's 35 feet high. Engineers are estimating, however, that it would cost $10 billion for the concrete panels, $5 billion for steel columns to hold the panels (labor included), and $1 billion for the foundation. Then we have to take transportation into account. We'd have to build roads to accommodate trucks hauling concrete and steel to remote locations in the middle of the desert. Let's be generous and say that costs another $2 billion. Now add 30 percent for management costs, engineering, and design. That makes $23.4 billion dollars if everything goes according to budget. Which it won't. When was the last time any major government project stayed within its budget? And that's just building it. The wall also has to be maintained. The Congressional budget office says the cost for that would exceed the building cost in only seven years. AND you have to staff it. Even if you only assigned one person per mile, that's 2,000 federal workers per shift, and they all need salaries, pensions, insurance, all that stuff.
2. It would only stop half of illegal entries. The idea that all illegals are the result of people sneaking or being smuggled across the border is a myth. Half of them enter through airports, trains, and other legitimate ways, and then overstay their visas. The wall won't stop that. And those who do sneak in come with legit trade cargo and other means. Trump hasn't said anything about more inspections of goods crossing the border.
Furthermore, the Wall would likely be worthless as a barrier. Proponents point to the one in Israel, even though tunnels have been found under that one frequently, some of them miles long and wide enough to drive a car through! The Berlin Wall was breached so often - despite armed guards with shoot-to-kill orders - that Berlin now has a museum at Checkpoint Charlie dedicated to such escapes.
3. It would cause a LOT of environmental damage. The Rio Grande River runs along the border, and you can't build such a structure on a river, or even right next to one; most border fences are miles away from the actual border. A wall would prevent water from flowing into the river, causing floods when it rains and drying up the river when it doesn't. Animals like jaguars would need to adapt new migration patterns or starve. Bush had to override over thirty EPA standards - including the Endangered Species Act and Clean water Act - simply to put up fencing.
4. Mexico will
never pay for it. Here's a brief lesson in Mexican politics. They have elected officials just like we do. They have political parties, just like we do, they're divided on the issues, just like we are, and they hate each other as much as American politicians do.
But they all agree that siding with Trump on this issue is political suicide. Their current President won by a landslide by making "refusal to cave to Trump" part of his platform.
As for Trump's idea to raise border tariffs, he'd have to ask Congress for that, and it's doubtful they'd agree to it. Food prices would soar and nobody in Congress wants to go on record for jacking up food prices. Know why corn is so cheap? Well, it's related to the reason Iowa has one of the most important caucus.
5. Much of the proposed wall is on private property.
In Texas, no less, a state Republicans simply cannot afford to lose. You can argue Eminent Domain all you like. Courts are already backlogged decades with similar cases..
6. You think this will stop smugglers? It's
already making them rich! Mexican cartels who smuggle drugs and smuggle people across the border are already charging more for their services by using the threat of the wall as an excuse for hazard pay. And again, this is no barrier.
7. It will never be finished. To give a comparison, the I-80 highway took 30 years to build, and that didn't have any of the above problems. Even if Trump wins a second term, his successor will likely cancel the project. Some idealists think Pence is next in line, but even if, by some miracle he is, Pence ain't stupid. He quickly cancelled his Religious Freedoms Act when he realized the economic disaster it was about to cause Indianapolis, and it's doubtful he wants this even worse disaster on his shoulders.
Edit: This just in: Trump's own lawyers now say his national emergency is unconstitutional and impeachable:
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/02/tr...al-impeachable/?utm_source=push_notifications
