Does deterrence work against asylum seekers or illegal immigrants from these countries

Does deterrence work against asylum seekers or illegal immigrants from these countries

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doubt it. only significant fines for employers (whether they use the "subcontractor" ruse or not) will work. then we'll be faced with a different problem, because most aren't willing to break their backs working in agriculture or landscaping for a pittance, and the rest of us don't want the cost of food and other services to go up by double digit percentages. let's face it, our jobs aren't going to give us raises to match inflation even in the current economy. at that point, we'll be forced to expand our guest worker program, which needs to happen anyway. i support an amnesty on top of that, but that's probably the topic for another thread.

Unitedwestand13 said:

The supposed justification behind trump’s “no tolerance” immigration policy is that it is meant to serve as a deterrent againist further attempts at crossing to the border illegally.

There is a fundamental problem with this approach: deterrence does not work againist the asylum seakers currently in the news.

The asylum seekers are from honduras,



El Salvador


And Guatemala



https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/04/30/americas/migrant-caravan-countries-snapshots/index.html

So if they are forced to choose between risking crossing our border or going back, is it any surprise that the asylum seekers will always choose to risk crossing the border?

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There is no doubt in my mind that it is a deterrent. Of course the amount of that deterrent is about impossible to calculate.

Unitedwestand13 said:

if the alternative is going back to their home countries, then these people have no choice but to enter the united states.

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Why don't they just stay in Mexico? Isn't Mexico better than what they left in their own countries?

Common Sense 1 said:

You have to wonder why we think we can control our borders? So many people suffering all around the world. Everyone who feels that they want to live here should be allowed no questions asked.
Come on world you are all welcome to the United States of American. Get benefits from the federal government. To the tax payers please stop complaining.... Everyone has a right to come here and you should pay for it. What a wonderful it would be!

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Exactly. There are over 7 billion people in the world and probably over 3 billion would be better off in the US than in their own countries. Do we have room for 3 billion more people in the US? Do we have the money to support 3 billion more people?

Unitedwestand13 said:

i oppose border walls on principle alone, because any wall on the u.s. southern border will become infamous for putting America's selfishness and nativism on display.

the border wall will become our nation's berlin wall

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You sound so generous, that is a good quality! The bank and drugstore near my house that I frequent were both robbed at gunpoint, they have found two meth houses nearby, I have found syringes in my front yard and there have been drive by shootings in my area. I am afraid, can I come and live in your house?

Is zero tolerance a good deterrent? Why would "they'll try to deport you" be a bigger motivating factor than "you will likely be killed if you stay where you are"?

ttwtt78640 said:

There are, no doubt, many advantages to leaving Mexico (they have already 'escaped' their Central American homelands) in favor of entering (or seeking asylum in) the US but doing so illegally (with the expensive aid of shady coyotes) is just plain stupid.

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As noted before, I met with Mexicans sheltering these migrants in Guanajuato. Some of them indeed are headed to northern Mexico, to Monterrey to find jobs, some disappeared in the Capitol, others never came to Mexico, and sought shelter in other nearby countries. I assume destinations depend on where relatives might be, rumors they have heard, the advice good or bad from smugglers, etc.

I am against illegal immigration and for stopping and deterring it in reasonable, legal ways, as well as deporting those who are found here illegally. However, zero tolerance rules do not work. Look at what happens when such rules are put in place at schools. They fail to look at circumstances or uphold the reason for doing things. Hell, it would be very bad if we actually did prevent an actual citizen of the US from getting back in because "well they were caught trying to cross the border illegally, they must be an illegal immigrant". Maybe they didn't know where to go or how to prove they were who they claimed without doing so. (I know, unlikely situation, but still possible.)

It absolutely works. Doesn't make it right or good policy.

Just electing Trump caused a huge drop in crossings. Just having him in office after his heated rhetoric was a deterrent.

It would be even more effective to spend an evening or two each month machine-gunning anyone spotted crossing the border from attack helicopters with night vision.

Or just dumping toxic/radioactive waste right on the other side of the border. What're they going to do about it?

Neither one is a policy I'd support any more than charging border crossers criminally specifically to jerk their families around, as an object lesson for the rest.