[Image: Cowboy Posse, by William H D Koerner / American Gallery]

by Howard Haykin

So, Donald Trump’s proposed budget is out for viewing, and he’s asking $1.6 billion to begin building a wall along the border with Mexico – significantly less than the amount needed to complete a project that few politicians, Democrat or Republican, want. Should we take this as a positive sign? No. An emphatic No!

While Trump continues with his campaign rhetoric that he’ll find a way for Mexico to repay the U.S. for construction of the wall, some Republican leaders in Congress have said he first needs to demonstrate broader support for this “big, beautiful wall.” Members of the House Freedom Caucus said earlier this year that Trump would have to show how he would offset the cost of a wall. Democrats flatly oppose the proposed wall.  

If Trump's budget request is passed, enabling him to cover nearly 10% of the estimated total cost of a border wall, rest assured that Donald Trump will exert every last ounce of energy chipping away at opposition - as he incrementally obtains the needed funds to complete the project that few want.

Take a cue from Ronald Reagan, who would say in his Old Wild West movies : “LET’S CUT 'EM OFF AT THE PASS!”