No, Mexico is not going to pay for a wall constructed along its border with the U.S., but Democrats would oppose it even if Mexico did agree to finance it. Why? If you ask House minority leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), she will tell you that the proposed wall is “too high.” Too high for what Pelosi has failed to specify, though she has said that walling off “neighbors” is “obnoxious.”
The simple truth is that a wall would drastically reduce the number of aliens sneaking across the border, which the Democrats are counting on as future voters.
This is not to say that there aren’t Republicans who have expressed concern over the cost of such a wall, which according to estimates could run as high as $30 billion over ten years.
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But now Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) has come up with a plan for funding the wall. Inhofe unveiled his proposal, fittingly named the “Wall Act,” last Thursday at a news conference. Essentially, the plan would pay for the wall by eliminating loopholes that allow illegal aliens to receive federal benefits.
Specifically, the bill would:
- Require a work-authorized Social Security Number to claim refundable tax credits.
- Require states to verify citizenship and a work-authorized Social Security Number to be eligible for welfare benefits.
- Increase the minimum fines on people crossing the border illegally.
Inhofe is confident that his plan will raise anywhere from $13.9 billion to $30 billion over the next ten years. In the video that follows, he states, “If you believe we should have legal citizens coming in entitled to the benefits of this country instead of individuals coming into the country to get the benefits, this is the way to do it.”
