It would be possible to build a 2,000-mile-long Berlin Wall, complete with watchtowers. But it would be stupid and counterproductive. The U.S.-Mexico relationship is vital, economically and politically, and the border has to be permeable enough to permit a massive legitimate daily flow of goods and people.
Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, who is seeking approval to sue the state to overturn the new law, told me on Monday that the only solution is comprehensive reform that provides a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants already settled here, a legal way for temporary workers to come and go, and increased quotas for Mexicans who want to immigrate permanently.
The only real barrier to entry was prospects of finding employment. Creating a physical fence thousands of miles long always has been and always will be a stupid endeavor.