Why is Trump's wall idea so bad? originally appeared on Quora - the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.
Answer by John Podesta, Hillary Clinton Campaign Chair, on Quora.
This idea shows exactly why Donald Trump is unqualified for the office of president.
Where to start?
It's completely unnecessary for securing our borders. We spend roughly $7 billion per year to place thousands of border patrol agents in the field and inspectors at our ports. We have vehicles, aircrafts, watercrafts, camera towers, and even aerial drones. It's why the director of customs and border protection under President George W. Bush said that building a physical fence along the entire border with Mexico was "one of the dumbest ideas I heard when I was commissioner."
It would be terrible diplomacy. Building a border wall would put a terrible strain on our relationship with Mexico, one of our closest allies and trading partners--not to mention with the rest of the world. We have friendly neighbors to our immediate north and south. Why would we jeopardize that?
And it would be an incredible waste of money. Experts estimate that Donald Trump's wall would cost at least $25 billion. That's enough to build 1,500 new elementary schools, or send more than 300,000 veterans to college, or install enough renewable energy to power more than 5 million homes. In other words, we could help a lot of hardworking American families with all of the money Trump would waste on his wall.
Our relationships with our allies--whether they are on our borders or on the other side of the world--are critical to our national security objectives. Hillary understands this better than anyone. As secretary of state, she worked to restore America's relationships, which had been badly damaged by the Bush administration's go-it-alone approach to foreign policy. And as president, she'll work to strengthen our partnerships and nurture new ones.
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