BORDER/DHS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP POSITION CHANGES/WALL: “The Trump administration would cut or delay funding for border surveillance, radar technology, patrol boats and customs agents in its upcoming spending plan to curb illegal immigration — all proven security measures that officials and experts have said are more effective than building a wall along the Mexican border.
President Trump has made the border wall a focus of his campaign against illegal immigration to stop drugs, terrorists and gangs like MS-13 from coming into the United States. Under spending plans submitted last week to Congress, the wall would cost $18 billion over the next 10 years, and be erected along nearly 900 miles of the southern border.
The wall also has become a bargaining chip in negotiations with Congress as lawmakers seek to prevent nearly 800,000 young undocumented immigrants from being deported.
But security experts said the president’s focus on a border wall ignores the constantly evolving nature of terrorism, immigration and drug trafficking…
Homeland Security officials have long and frequently described border security as a holistic system, made up not just of walls and fencing but also patrol routes, lighting, cameras, sensors and personnel.”
-Ron Nixion, “To Pay for Wall, Trump Would Cut Proven Border Security Measures,” The New York Times online, Jan. 8, 2018