Because your Congress is dysfunctional.Jazman wrote: ↑Wed Jan 24, 2024 12:42 pmSo why don't policy makers / legislatures nationally and border-state of both parties (but maybe more specifically Republicans) hammer out policy and allocate funds to staff-up and improve the system so that follow-ups, tracking etc (including case hearing / judging) gets done more quickly and efficiently? Hmmm?
For example, since the GOP took over the House in 2022 they haven't passed a single individual spending bill which is where you would actually allocate NEW money towards specific things like immigration enforcement. All they have done is go from one self-inflicted made-up crisis over the debt ceiling to another self-inflicted made-up crisis over the budget. Which ends up in some sort of continuing resolution that rolls over the previous year's spending unchanged.
This clown show is actually what got Kevin McCarthy stripped of his speakership. When they actually came to some sort of interim spending agreement last summer and the extreme right in his party threw a hissy fit since they actually wanted a government shut-down. More recently Speaker Johnson has agreed to another continuing resolution to kick the can down the road until mid-March or so.
The point is that when they play these endless budgetary games, they aren't actually doing their REAL jobs which is to appropriate funds to specific agencies for specific tasks and priorities, such as the border. And then also do oversight over how those funds are being spend and how the laws they have passed are being implemented. They aren't doing any of that.
And make no mistake, rolling over the 2022 budget to 2023, and now the 2023 budget to 2024 actually amounts to a budget cut, even if they tack on an extra 1% or whatever. Because the work of an agency like the border patrol gets more expensive every year. Equipment like new vehicles goes up more than 1% per year. Construction of new facilities goes up by more than 1% per year. And payroll costs go up by more than 1% per year as well since employees get both raises and promotions which over time makes them more expensive. And the costs of employee benefits like healthcare also go up. You don't just fire your older more expensive workers and hire 24 year-olds every year. And you don't refuse to promote people to higher ranks simply because it costs more.
So that is why new money isn't going to do things like "staff up and improve the system". It is because Congress would rather play budgetary games and posture for the cameras and news shows than do their actual jobs.
