The New York Times’ Randal C. Archibold and Julia Preston provide a great rundown of the myriad political, economic, environmental, and—oh yeah—security issues involved in building a fence across the Texas-Mexican border. Dept. of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff insists on going forward with a $2.1 billion, 670-mile fence (or $3 million a mile) despite environmental groups suing him and border communities saying he’s destroying their backyards.

What’s more, a spokesman for Border Patrol at DHS admits that the decline in illegal border crossings has little to do with the developing fence. One theory for this decline is that America’s terrible economy is discouraging people to come over seeking employment. Read Archibold and Preston here. MB

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