Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation published the paper Border Security at a Crossroads: The Uncertain Future of America’s Southwestern Border.
“The United States experienced a massive surge of migrants making their way to America’s southwestern borders in 2019,” said the paper’s co-author Igor Magalhaes. “Unlike previous waves of migrants, this one was comprised primarily of family units and unaccompanied minors from Central America. The volume and composition of the migrants quickly overwhelmed the American asylum system—migrant shelters overflowed, children were separated from their parents, and immigration court dockets soared.”
In response, the Trump administration undertook several initiatives such as moving forward with the construction of a wall on the southern border, closing several loopholes in the asylum system, and negotiating agreements with Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries aimed at discouraging migrants from making the dangerous journey and thereby relieving the overwhelmed asylum apparatus.
“The current presidential administration took multiple actions to effectively address the border crisis of 2019,” said the paper’s co-author Grace Watson. “However, some of the gains that have been achieved are quite fragile, due to variables such as the impact of the pandemic, instability in the region and the upcoming U.S. presidential election.”
To read the paper in full, please visit: