I'm sure we all agree, Pat, that illegal immigration is an incredibly significant issue that demands a multi-faceted solution. I've done some poking around and found some interesting stats:

Federal prisons house approximately 10% of all persons incarcerated. 57% are in state prisons and 33% are in local prisons. I don't have the numbers on how many are here illegally. It would be interesting to know what percentage are in due to marijuana trafficking or possession.

2 million people have been deported since 2009. And I realize that the word "deported" can mean different things.

Presently, US Immigration and Customs have the resources to annually deport 400,000 illegal immigrants. For illustration purposes, if we assume there are 12 million here illegally, it would take 30 years to deport that cohort. And that of course assumes that the 12 million doesn't increase (and it obviously will). In other words, most of these people aren't going anywhere.

I haven't studied this issue in depth but I do believe that any solution should include a reasonable pathway to citizenship for those who are here (that includes criminal checks, fines/fees, etc.), significant strengthening of our borders, greater pressure on the US companies that employ illegal immigrants, and US aid to those countries from which these desperate people flee. If their economies can improve and the unimaginable violence can combatted, they'd be less inclined to leave their homes. I imagine that most people who arrive here illegally are simply desperate and if I were in their shoes, and I had the guts that they obviously must possess, I might act similarly. And please, let's not forget that our seemingly endless demand for drugs and our massive stock of weapons are fueling so much of the violence that some are fleeing. Blood is on our hands too. Still, we are so lucky to have been born here. There but for the grace of...as they say.

Peter T.