Zach LarkinsTHE BORDER QUESTION
I've mentioned this in past articles and it feels sort of good to know I was right. On the other hand, it is a rather shameful thing to have to admit. I'm talking, of course, about our sieve-like border and lax immigration laws. It seems that the Americans are finally looking at it rather seriously.
Any time I've railed against illegal immigrants or questionable refugees, I've gotten a number of comments calling me all sorts of names and accusing me of all sorts of things. I've often said we should take a lesson from Australia in the way they handle these matters and been vilified by the left-wing nuts who call me callous and cold-hearted. Well, I don't stand alone anymore.
Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told a Congress committee this week that U.S. officials should watch how Canada enforces its immigration rules to see if we are being tough enough. "We should always keep an eye on what the Canadians are doing with their immigration controls and their visa policies, because if they get sloppy or their civil liberties concerns get even more paramount in their own thinking, we may need to worry about tightening up that border even more," he said. Canada's procedures are "not airtight," he told a homeland security subcommittee in the House of Representatives.
I'm not exactly sure how anyone can make their borders ‘airtight', but we certainly have to have stricter controls over who we let in. O'Hanlon went on to say, "The Canadians do have this Commonwealth issue. There are a lot of would-be terrorists who live in Britain, not to mention Pakistan and south Asia (with direct access to the Canada). So I do think we have to be at least a little nervous." He is right to be nervous. Canada should be just as nervous if not more so. Terrorism didn't start and finish on 9/11. It has spread to Spain, France and the UK. Daily we read reports about another terrorist cell being uncovered. We have been lucky so far in that, except for the cell found recently in Toronto, most of the action has taken place on foreign soil. But it certainly does not mean we are in the clear. Right now, a German woman and her son are being held hostage in Iraq, with her captors demanding the withdrawal of German troops from Afghanistan.
Several experts at Thursday's hearing testified that Americans can't ignore security at the northern border just because illegal immigrants at the Mexican line are such a big problem. "I believe we need to close the entire circle," said Representative Loretta Sanchez of California, who chairs the committee. "I don't mean fence everything. But close it so we have a pretty high level of confidence that we do have a say in who's coming in and going out."
As Canada's largest trading partner, we'd better listen to the US. Take some notes and take some steps. If it offends some of the liberals, too bad. They can still sleep safely at night knowing someone is keeping them out of harm's way.
Sources: Canadian Press Keep An Eye On Canada The National Post
Any time I've railed against illegal immigrants or questionable refugees, I've gotten a number of comments calling me all sorts of names and accusing me of all sorts of things. I've often said we should take a lesson from Australia in the way they handle these matters and been vilified by the left-wing nuts who call me callous and cold-hearted. Well, I don't stand alone anymore.
Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told a Congress committee this week that U.S. officials should watch how Canada enforces its immigration rules to see if we are being tough enough. "We should always keep an eye on what the Canadians are doing with their immigration controls and their visa policies, because if they get sloppy or their civil liberties concerns get even more paramount in their own thinking, we may need to worry about tightening up that border even more," he said. Canada's procedures are "not airtight," he told a homeland security subcommittee in the House of Representatives.
I'm not exactly sure how anyone can make their borders ‘airtight', but we certainly have to have stricter controls over who we let in. O'Hanlon went on to say, "The Canadians do have this Commonwealth issue. There are a lot of would-be terrorists who live in Britain, not to mention Pakistan and south Asia (with direct access to the Canada). So I do think we have to be at least a little nervous." He is right to be nervous. Canada should be just as nervous if not more so. Terrorism didn't start and finish on 9/11. It has spread to Spain, France and the UK. Daily we read reports about another terrorist cell being uncovered. We have been lucky so far in that, except for the cell found recently in Toronto, most of the action has taken place on foreign soil. But it certainly does not mean we are in the clear. Right now, a German woman and her son are being held hostage in Iraq, with her captors demanding the withdrawal of German troops from Afghanistan.
Several experts at Thursday's hearing testified that Americans can't ignore security at the northern border just because illegal immigrants at the Mexican line are such a big problem. "I believe we need to close the entire circle," said Representative Loretta Sanchez of California, who chairs the committee. "I don't mean fence everything. But close it so we have a pretty high level of confidence that we do have a say in who's coming in and going out."
As Canada's largest trading partner, we'd better listen to the US. Take some notes and take some steps. If it offends some of the liberals, too bad. They can still sleep safely at night knowing someone is keeping them out of harm's way.
Sources: Canadian Press Keep An Eye On Canada The National Post
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