Chris Van Hollen: “I want to make my position on this issue clear. I support the construction of a fence to better secure our border and…”

“I want to make my position on this issue clear. I support the construction of a fence to better secure our border and supported its funding in the Homeland Security Appropriations Act. However, this bill simply doesn't provide for a fence. In a typical example of congressional overreaching and micromanagement, the bill specifies exactly how such a fence will be built and the precise location of each segment of the fence. We are neither engineers nor construction managers nor do we know the best alignment of such a fence. We should simply direct the experts to construct a fence that accomplishes the objective of preventing illegal immigration and allow it to be built in the most cost-effective manner.”