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Cynthia Watson's avatar

Super super comments! Thank you so much.

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Jim Hudson's avatar

Glad I read this column after yesterday's! I was about to jump onto yesterday's post probably with the same general comments your other reader provided. First, it's a difficult task for most folks to get beyond what they see on Fox News, MSNBC or other networks w/ respect to world issues the U.S. is confronting daily. There should be no doubt in anyone's minds that 99% (if not 100%) of the news being provided to us is politically spun. And while I do tend to watch Fox more than others, I'll be the first to state that they are NOT "fair and balanced"... but neither are any of the others. So that leaves us to dig further into issues, enter into discussion, consider alternative views and form our own opinions based on that research. Granted, most will not go much farther than switching from one network to another and call it good. Forums like this are critical to stretch one's brain...and position.

As a direct descendent of of legal immigrants (Grandfather from Germany after WWII and Grandmother from Norway about the same time)... I have a great appreciation for the immigration issue. But as you pointed out, I fall in the "most Americans" camp in that I support fully legal immigration vs. what we tend to be seeing at our Southern border. Trained in the military system we were always taught: don't present a problem without a few potential solutions. Unfortunately, I'm no expert on immigration, migrant flow or border protection so I have no solutions to offer. However, it would seem to me that a lot of money we're spending on a variety of programs in our country and around the globe might be better spent on adding manpower and resources to divert the illegal immigrants into the legal path of potential citizenship.

Senator James Lankford (R, Oklahoma) publishes a report each year (link to .pdf document is below) identifying government funded programs that serve as potential examples of where money is being spent that might be better allocated. You can cut and paste the link or find his latest report by Googling: Lankford Fumbles report 2023. I won't list the many examples here, but suffice it to say, even the most open thinking person might raise eyebrows at things like: a $30K fellowship to complete a book on "Louchebem" (how to preserve a secret language spoken by Paris meat butchers since the 13th century)... or, since we're talking about Mexico, $66K to sponsor a book that explores "the disciplinary force in the hands of officials who imposed order by utilizing important technology including bells, cannons and firearms to shape their authority." I get it. $96K is pocket litter in the Federal Budget but it all adds up. I'd rather see the $66K used to purchase loudspeakers at the Southern border to help direct immigrants into the correct lines to apply for legal citizenship or well documented work Visas.

Anyone who has applied for a passport or even a Global Entry program card lately can attest to the delays in getting appointments for those processes and/or the wait time to get your passport back. And that's for U.S. Citizens with a history already in the system. Shouldn't take that long. But I know Customs and Border Patrol are stretched thin and having to divert resources to shore up the break in the dam.

Yep... there are a myriad of trouble-spots world-wide that we need to pay attention to. Determining which wolf is closest to the fire becomes the tough strategic (and at times, tactical) dilemma.

chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.lankford.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/media/doc/federal_fumbles_volume_7.pdf

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