All over the United States, you’ll find aging commuter trains, dams, tunnels, subways, electric grids, sewage systems and of course bridges in desperate need of repairs and upgrades. These improvements would lead to decent paying jobs for people today, and more productivity for the future.
However, President Donald Trump’s obsession with an unnecessary $20 billion construction project puts projects of value on the back burner. Trump’s project has the White House putting such urgent revivals on hold.
And the reason for this? Most Americans already know that Trump’s 2,000 mile wall has been his top priority since taking office. But, the $20 billion project will only drain the US economy in vain… because of Trump’s vanity!
While Mexicans once poured into the United States, from 2009 to 2014, more left the U.S. than came here. The number of crossings in 2015 was one-tenth of the total in 2005.
Meanwhile, putting bricks or concrete or stone many feet wide and high between the two nations would undoubtedly drag on a productive trade relationship that adds up to $1 billion a day — and sustains 6 million American jobs.
And it’s costly and complex, far more so than Trump has ever admitted.
Much of the border with our southern neighbor is made up of the Rio Grande river — a waterway on which thousands upon thousands of Americans depend. Does Trump intend to disrupt that access in order to put up an impenetrable barrier? Nobody knows.
Then, there’s the expensive and elaborate process of obtaining the land. Before the government can construct on property, it needs to own it.
In Texas, which constitutes half of the stretch in question, the government only owns 100 miles of the 1,200-mile border.
Even if all that territory is eventually claimed through the eminent domain process, it will cost billions of dollars and take years of effort to make happen.
