WASHINGTON—Stressing that current efforts to safeguard the boundary do not go far enough, Congress approved a landmark bill Wednesday that will deploy armed patrols along the U.S. poverty line. “At present, the border between the impoverished and the relatively well-off is not fully secure, but this legislation will ensure that we have the security forces and equipment we need to deter anyone living below this boundary from crossing into the middle class,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), noting that the measure will position heavily armed personnel along the full length of the poverty line, which extends through numerous inner cities, across Appalachia, and over the entire breadth of the country. “The fact is that the people who live below this boundary are desperate, often lawless individuals who want the freedoms and opportunities that we have on our side of the border, and they will do anything to get here. This measure will finally provide agents with the resources they need to stem these unwanted intrusions into our territory by using intimidation, threats of incarceration, or force if necessary.” Ryan added that he would be open to further fortifying the poverty line, citing the success of the impenetrable wall that the U.S. has built along its upper boundary between the middle class and the rich.

Advertisement