Inside the Beltway: Tim Scott’s plan for border security as president

NEWS AND OPINION:

Sen. Tim Scott has released a lengthy but comprehensive list of his plans to counter the challenges brought on by porous U.S. borders. Here’s a few examples of what the South Carolina Republican has in mind, gleaned from a written report the lawmaker shared with the Beltway.

“I will restart construction to finish the border wall and deploy the latest and greatest military-grade technology to crack down on drug smuggling and human trafficking at our entry ports. I will cancel President Biden’s 87,000 new IRS agents and double Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to 87,000 agents instead,” Mr. Scott said in his report.

“I have already authored a bill to reinstate Title 42 and fast deportations until we have a handle on the fentanyl emergency. When I’m in the Oval Office, I’ll sign it into law,” he continued, citing a pandemic-era policy that had regulated border crossings as a precaution against COVID-19 but that had expired on May 11.

Mr. Scott has additional plans as well.

“I will delete the Biden administration’s new smartphone app that provides concierge service to illegal immigrants, end catch-and-release, and hire 1,000 new immigration judges so we can stop releasing people into our heartland with a polite invitation to a hearing often multiple years away,” Mr. Scott said.

“I will implement a zero-tolerance policy for illegal immigrants with criminal records. If you’ve broken the law to get here and you break our laws again, the day your prison sentence ends, you aren’t going free on American soil — you’re going back where you came from,” he noted.

“I’m sure the far Left will call this radical. Everybody else calls it common sense,” Mr. Scott said.

NOW THERE’S A THOUGHT

“Americans are struggling — facing unnecessarily high inflation, correspondingly high-interest rates, artificially high energy costs, and high anxiety,” writes Robert B. Charles, in an essay published by the Association of Mature American Citizens, a conservative advocacy organization.

He cites “federal mismanagement, overspending, and overregulation” as the culprits here.

“Needed are leaders who recall thrift – an American value,” Mr. Charles says.

“American value? Yes, we are a people who traditionally did not ask for more government but less. Why? Because more government meant less liberty – more waste, more taxes, more mandates,” he continues.

Mr. Charles is president of the Charles Group, a consulting group in the nation’s capital, and served as assistant secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement affairs from 2003 to 2005.

“We did not want more welfare, forced dependence, bailouts, or freebies. We wanted a chance to do what we could, what we were born to, an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work. It was not complicated. Most just wanted a chance to work, make ends meet, and enjoy the sunset,” Mr. Charles observed.

“When you get right down to it, most people do not want more government. They want their leaders to be thrifty, stay on budget, and conserve the limited resources we all have,” he noted.

“Leaders with a bead on taxpayers should know, if you can save a dollar, do. Until then, ‘use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.’ The old mantra is back!” Mr. Charles later concluded.

Find his complete essay at https://amac.us/newsline/

ON TRACK

Improvements could be in the making for train travel. The upgrade won’t be happening on the very popular Acela, which zips along at 150 mph between the nation’s capital and New York City.

Look to the Lone Star State, says Amtrak.

“If we are going to add more high-speed rail to this country, the Dallas to Houston corridor is a compelling proposition and offers great potential,” Andy Byford, Amtrak’s senior vice president of high-speed rail development programs, said in a written statement.

“We believe many of the country’s biggest and fastest-growing metropolitan areas, like Houston and Dallas, deserve more high quality high-speed, intercity rail service and we are proud to bring our experience to evaluate this potential project and explore opportunities with Texas Central so the state can meet its full transportation needs,” he said.

The train would streak along at 205 mph along the 240-mile route, and would offer a total travel time between the two cities of less than 90 minutes.

“When complete, this project is forecast to provide significant social, environmental, employment and economic benefits to the people of Texas. As an example, the project is estimated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 100,000 tons per year, saving 65 million gallons of fuel while removing 12,500 cars per day from I-45,” Amtrak said in a written statement.

THE GREATEST GENERATION

The Friends of the National World War II Memorial and the National Park Service will co-host a V-J Day Observance at the World War II Memorial on at 11 a.m. EDT on Sept. 2.

As part of the commemoration, World War II veterans will place wreaths at the memorial Freedom Wall in remembrance of the more than 400,000 men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces who lost their lives during World War II.

If you know of hero veteran — or if you are a hero veteran from that era who would like to participate in the event, visit this site to register: wwiimemorialfriends.org/ceremony-registration. Alternatively, check in at this email: Hrotondi@wwiimemorialfriends.org.

POLL DU JOUR

• 13% of U.S. adults would describe their own political viewpoint as “very conservative.”

• 19% would describe their political viewpoint as “conservative.”

• 33% would describe their viewpoint as “moderate.”

• 16% would describe their viewpoint as “liberal.”

• 10% would describe their viewpoint as “very liberal.”

• 9% are not sure what their political viewpoint is.

SOURCE: An Economist/YouGov poll of 1,500 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 5-8.