Jim Costa: “I heard it not once, not twice, but more times than I care to remember. Clearly, Mexico is not going to pay for the…”

“I heard it not once, not twice, but more times than I care to remember. Clearly, Mexico is not going to pay for the wall. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Garamendi and I know that there is bipartisan willingness to improve border security. The gentleman and I know, because we are from California, that the majority of the drug trafficking and the other crimes that are occurring are through what we call ports of legal entry. That sounds like a complicated technical term, but it just means it is an open border crossing between the U.S. and Mexico, and thousands of people cross every day at many of these border crossings. That is where the overwhelming majority of the illegal trafficking is taking place, and along the ocean. And no bill, no bright and shiny 30-foot wall, will make a difference. El Chapo, whom we are holding now in prison, built tunnels to get out of prison. There are tunnels under existing walls that the President was briefed on when he went down to the border last week. Mr. Speaker, I don't care how the wall is built, because it is not going to improve border security. Mind you, we have more than 500 miles of existing barriers and fences at the San Ysidro border, and some of the other portions of the U.S.- Mexican border, where it makes sense.…”