Defend the Border at All Costs? [OPINION]

The thought of violence as the migrant caravan reaches our southern border frightens me. It frightens me not only for the propaganda opportunities it presents, but because I believe there is the possibility that someone could get seriously hurt in what appears to be an almost inevitable clash once the caravan reaches here.

The Trump Administration is bound by the Constitution to provide for the defense of our sovereignty, and that includes invasions from citizens of other nations who try to force their way in while carrying the flag of the nation from which they came.

The Administration is promising to send the military to the border to meet the threat. I support that move, but I can't help worrying what might result if there is resistance.

This human caravan is undoubtedly a hodgepodge of innocent families who are looking to escape poverty and oppression, but it likely contains criminals and possibly those whose intent is to cause harm to this country. Without a doubt, the overwhelming majority is poor, uneducated and without means to care for themselves. That responsibility would fall to American taxpayers, should they be allowed to gain entrance to this country.

The organizers of this caravan are obviously well-heeled and have an objective. I suspect that they will hide behind the women and children who will be forced to the head of the caravan in order to be the first to encounter whatever security measures are put into place.

The optics of a bloody confrontation with migrants at the border could be devastating to efforts to reform immigration policies.

Democrat leaders, who not so long ago were demanding an end to illegal immigration and many of whom demanded a border wall, need to find their voices and speak out about this looming crisis. What is happening on the border is a threat to this nation's stability and should be everyone's problem, not a partisan problem.

How far would you go to defend the southern border from this growing caravan threat?

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.