While immigration is one of the fundamental building blocks that makes America the unique nation that it is, the debate over our border security and immigration policy has become toxic because progressive politicians have put politics before principles and security. The illegal immigration problem has created a devastating financial burden on America. Government data and studies as of year ending 2021 show that the annual burden of $150 billion in cost associated with the unlawful immigration of over 17 million individuals residing in the U.S. is more than equal to what would be the cost of feeding, clothing, housing and providing all necessaries for virtually every one of the 554,000 homeless American citizens (about one quarter of them being children).
Among many other negative impacts from illegal immigration from an open border, U.S. Drug related casualties associated with Fentanyl from China, which passes through the southern border, has reached new highs with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reporting that that fentanyl accounted for about 71,000 deaths (representing 77 percent of overdose deaths in the U.S in 2021), which has reached over 112,000 deaths in year ending 2023.
These facts alone would be one of the more compelling reasons for an “America First” policy on immigration.