A study published last year about the cost of illegal immigration highlights the border policy differences between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.
When Joe Biden became president in January 2021, he immediately halted construction on Trump’s border wall, as well as ended his “remain in Mexico” policy for asylum seekers, terminated the agreements the previous administration made with the so-called triangle Central American nations regarding the flow of migrants, and paused deportations for those in the country illegally.
A flood of over 10 million migrants followed, including known getaways, averaging more per year than the entire term Trump was in office.
Biden placed Vice President Kamala Harris in charge of addressing the border crisis in March 2021.
“’When she speaks, she speaks for me,’ Biden said, noting her past work as California’s attorney general makes her specially equipped to lead the administration’s response,” The Associated Press reported at the time.
Trending:
A report released by the Federation for American Immigration Reform in March 2023 found the annual net cost to taxpayers for illegal immigrants in the country to be over $150 billion.
That figure includes a total cost of approximately $182 billion, offset by sales and other tax revenue from illegals of $32 billion.
“Illegal immigration costs each American taxpayer $1,156 per year ($957 after factoring in taxes paid by illegal aliens),” FAIR noted.
NEW – Migrant crisis cost taxpayers $150B last year – Fox pic.twitter.com/iISLav1vRd
— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) August 29, 2024
The group further broke down the expenditures as $66.5 billion for the federal government and $115.6 billion for state and local governments.
The areas of spending at the federal level include $25.1 billion for law enforcement and justice, $23.1 billion for medical, $11.6 billion for welfare programs, and $6.6 billion for education.
Meanwhile at the state levels the costs were $73.3 billion for education, $21.8 billion for law enforcement and justice, $18.6 billion for medical, and $2 billion for welfare.
US taxpayers paid $150 BILLION to care for illegal aliens… JUST LAST YEAR.
But a $5 billion wall is too expensive. pic.twitter.com/zPd9NPS3bq
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) August 29, 2024
FAIR noted, “Throughout this study, we have taken caution to never overestimate totals, and have chosen to err on the lower side of cost estimates, and the higher side of tax contributions, when our calculations resulted in a range instead of a static figure.”
“We do this to ensure that our cost figures do not extend beyond what the evidence can empirically prove. Combining this with the fact that there are some costs that cannot be reliably estimated, it can be safely assumed that the actual cost of illegal immigration is considerably higher than the final tally offered here,” the group added.
FAIR spokesperson Ira Mehlman told the New York Post in a story published Thursday, “As long as we keep allowing millions of people to come into the country illegally every year, it’s obviously going to continue to increase the costs.”
“This seems to be just sort of basic, common sense. If you were going to be bringing in lots and lots of people, many of them working off the books for very low wages, that there are going to be enormous social costs incurred,” he added.
How the migrant crisis drained $150 billion from taxpayers in a single year https://t.co/iNnf5byQJf pic.twitter.com/L4X7qr4mpk
— New York Post (@nypost) August 29, 2024
At a campaign event in Wisconsin on Wednesday, Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance said, “Kamala Harris opened the border, suspended deportations on Day One and stopped Donald Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy.
“When Donald Trump is president, we’re going to re-implement deportations, re-implement ‘Remain in Mexico,’ and tell people they’ve gotta go back where they came from and come through the proper channels.”
.@JDVance: “Kamala Harris opened the border, suspended deportations on Day One and stopped Donald Trump’s Remain in Mexico policy.
When Donald Trump is president, we’re going to RE-IMPLEMENT deportations, RE-IMPLEMENT Remain in Mexico, and tell people they’ve gotta go back… pic.twitter.com/DwbX6xGIf0
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) August 28, 2024
Last week at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Harris pledged if elected she would sign the border bill that failed to pass the Senate earlier this year.
A key Republican criticism of the legislation is that it would have allowed 5,000 illegal immigrants per day in for processing before a mandatory border shutdown would take effect.
So in theory, over 1.8 million could cross illegally into the country per year. It would then be up to the administration to decide if they could stay or not.
National Border Patrol Council president Brandon Judd, who has endorsed Trump for president, backed the bill at the time, saying overall it was at least a “step in the right direction.”
WOW!!! – Border Patrol President Endorses Trump!
Kamala Harris was OBLITERATED at last night’s Trump-Walz campaign rally as the National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd comes on stage and RIPS her apart on the border:
“Kamala Harris knows what she needs to do. I… pic.twitter.com/gRjdjuU4zh
— Conservative Brief (@ConservBrief) August 11, 2024
Judd said at a Trump rally in Charlotte, North Carolina earlier this month, “Kamala Harris knows what she needs to do. I was there. I gave her all of the policies that she needed. All of them. And she refused to implement them.
“She does not care about you. She does not care about the safety of this country.”
