John Oliver has a realistic recruitment pitch for Trump's Border Patrol surge
President Trump has made securing the U.S. border with Mexico a key priority of his administration, John Oliver noted on Sunday's Last Week Tonight. "And while that wall idea has received a lot of coverage, it is by no means Trump's only border plan. One of his more benign-sounding but potentially no-less-dangerous ideas concerns the Border Patrol." The Border Patrol isn't ICE — the agents doing the raids — or the customs officers at airports, he explained. They're the 20,000 agents who literally patrol the border, often alone, and Trump wants to add at least 5,000 more.
The work they do is part drug interdiction and part humanitarian work, but mostly boring, and not everyone can do the job, Oliver said. "And that is what makes Trump's plan expand the Border Patrol by 25 percent so concerning, because if you hire agents quickly and badly, it can actually leave us much less safe and have devastating consequences." We know this, because we've done this before, Oliver said. "So tonight, I would like to talk to you about the last Border Patrol hiring surge," in the late-2000s.
To double the Border Patrol, the George W. Bush administration did things like produce slick recruitment ads and sponsor a NASCAR car, but it also lowered standards, cut back training, and instituted a polygraph test only after some shady people made it through, Oliver explained. This led to a string of questionable shootings, very iffy agent activity, and at least 77 officers fired for corruption, often with Mexican drug cartels. "Look, whatever your feelings about the laws the Border Patrol have been given to enforce — and I have plenty of feelings on that — you do want the best possible people enforcing them," he said. "Because if you don't, as we have seen, bad things happen."
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.
"If we are going to hire all these people, the very least we can do is be more careful this time around," Oliver argued. "And one tiny step would be to have recruitment ads that show potential agents what the job is really like." The ad, like the rest of the segment, is peppered with NSFW language and irreverent jokes. Watch below. Peter Weber
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Today's political cartoons - March 27, 2024
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - Diddy raided, Biden investigated, and more
By The Week US Published
-
6 presumed dead in Baltimore bridge collapse
Speed Read A massive cargo ship hit a support pillar of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing it to crumple
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Best music albums: new releases of 2024
The Week Recommends A round-up of the best pop, dance, indie, classical and rock releases
By The Week UK Published
-
Kevin Hart awarded Mark Twain Prize
Speed Read He is the 25th recipient of the prestigious comedy prize
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Is Downton Abbey set to return for a final film?
Speed Read Imelda Staunton reveals that a third movie may be in the pipeline
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
'Oppenheimer' sweeps Oscars with 7 wins
speed read The film won best picture, best director (Christopher Nolan) and best actor (Cillian Murphy)
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Rust' armorer convicted of manslaughter
speed read The film's cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed by actor Alec Baldwin during rehearsal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The Beatles are getting 4 intersecting biopics
Speed Read Director Sam Mendes is making four separate movies, each told from the perspective of one band member
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Taylor Swift to Miley Cyrus: female artists dominate 2024 Grammys
Speed Read SZA, Phoebe Bridgers and Lainey Wilson were also among the winners at LA gala
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
South Korea passes law banning sale and production of dog meat
Speed Read Rare bipartisan support 'highlights changing attitudes' as young people shun centuries-old tradition
By The Week UK Published
-
Out of touch: Daryl Hall obtains restraining order against bandmate John Oates
Speed Read Lawsuit reveals unharmonious relationship between most commercially successful duo in pop history
By Jamie Timson, The Week UK Published