WALL: Not now, not ever

The Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain were for some time relatively effective because they also featured mined death strips with automatic and patrol gun fire. I believe we are not ready for this, yet. Otherwise “medieval” walls have proven in history to be ineffective.

Trump’s wall would be a huge waste of money, plus it would be an ugly scar in the landscape.

Polls show that more than 60 percent of the public disapproves of the wall. Even in our districts along the Mexican border, the majority is against a physical wall.

To keep illegals out, it would be much more effective to make E-verify mandatory for all employment with fines for any negligent employer. After all, if illegals know that they cannot get a job, they won’t come.

Years ago, the GOP was against E-verify in order to satisfy their base of farmers and small businesses who often relied on cheap illegal slave labor. Not even Trump’s golf courses use E-verify. Those golf courses just fired illegals they had employed for a dozen years full well knowing that they were illegals and would work for less. As reported, they were excellent employees. Trump himself was knowingly benefiting from their cheap labor, but those people became politically dispensable now. What hypocrisy!

The bipartisan Congressional Budget Office just reported that Trump’s government shutdown cost our economy $11 billion, of which $3 billion cannot be recovered. Will Trump and his acquiescent GOP take responsibility for this loss? No! When does this crap end?

Not one cent for a wall!

JUERGEN NOLTHENIUS

Coeur d’Alene