Washington, D.C.
With Congress scrambling to adjourn for the run-up to the November elections, the House last week voted to erect 700 miles of double-layer, 28-foot-high fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border. The $2.2 billion fence is all that remains of an ambitious package of immigration reforms that once included a guest worker program and a crackdown on companies that hire illegals. Even some border-control officers said they doubted that the fence, which would cover about a third of the U.S.-Mexico border, would stem the flow of illegal aliens. Still, polls show that voters, by a wide margin, favor tighter borders, and 64 House Democrats joined the all-but-six Republicans who supported the fence.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
