The piece is a bit sprawling, but it is an interesting interrogation of the political versus actual meaning of a "secure border." It gives a good overview of law enforcement operations on the border, as well as efforts to reform policy on Capitol Hill.

This is commentary posing as news reporting. I am saddened to see that my old newspaper did not properly label this piece as commentary. Had it been properly labeled it would be harder to find journalistic failures. But the fact is that all points of view are not given equal weight in this piece; there is relatively little reporting on the views of the proponents of stricter enforcement. There are serious holes in this piece, which appears to be written from a point of view of one reporter. Moreover, the reporter doesn't even answer questions raised by the reported facts--for instance at one point the reporter points to the drop in murders and violence as evidence that people in the country illegally are not a problem. But ... More »

Comprehensive -- covers from many angles. Frames the facts with the image of a border which can never be completely closed, only "managed;" this is appropriate, given the complexity of patrolling the border and the factors this piece outlines in describing the many difficulties around resolving the issue of illegal immigration.

Wagner deconstructs the meaning, and viability, of the "Secure the border" rhetoric. He draws on a variety of sources from different political persuasions, and overall the piece is informative, though not amazingly well-written or organized.

this perspective, that those calling for complete border contro before working on immigration reform are undermining the proces, is important to the understanding of the immigration issue. the facts show that so much more is being done in border control now than ever before, yet reform has stalled completely over many years. the point is implied here that if the reform had been done earlier, the contro would now be much easier.

The article presents some hard facts that are much overridden by the false propaganda of Faux Noose and others, and then provides some reasoned arguments. Also, there is no mention of workplace enforcement that would seriously penalize any employer who did not use the federal worker screening program. If the border crossers are coming across for jobs, cut off the jobs.

A well thought out analysis of the illegal immigration problems and how political retoric ignores reality. Again, simplistic, bumper-sticker slogans are never enough to solve major immigration reform that is necessary.

Any immigration reform includes a pathway to citizenship. Amnisty has been tried before all it does is attract more illegal aliens. the author never mentions that part of immigration reform. I think people would be willing to reform immigration before the border is secure if it did not include amnisty. Look how far real id got. The states don't want to pay for it. If the feds are serious they will make it a funded mandate. You need biometric id before you can get good employer verification.

No. It reads more like an opinion editorial rather than news

I think Dennis Wagner did a reasonable job in researching and writing this article. The real problem with trying to 'close' the border between the U.S. and Mexico is the inherent racism that permeates our Southwestern States as well as some of the Border Patrol agents and other law enforcement officers who patrol the border. As for Mark Monday's criticism of Wagner's work, come on, Mark. When David Molina and I tried to turn you into a real newspaper reporter on Ev Mecham's old newspaper, the American, back in Phoenix, you didn't know a thing about journalism or girls. We tried to edify you and you turned into a pretty good investigative reporter, but your parents' academic credentials have blurred your vision in your mature ... More »