Border Wins Are Saving American Jobs—Don't Let the Swamp Shut It Down

By Tucker McAllister | Circus of Power | February 08, 2026

Back in Millbrook, Ohio, when the Delco plant finally padlocked its gates in 2016, it wasn't the layoffs alone that gutted us. It was the flood of cheap labor from south of the border that kept wages flat for the guys who did hang on, scraping by in construction or whatever odd jobs popped up. Folks like my old neighbor Hank, a welder who'd put in 30 years, ended up competing with crews willing to work for half the pay—no benefits, no questions asked. That's the hidden cost of open borders: not just the migrants' plight, but the erosion of the American Dream for working families already on the ropes. Fast-forward to today, and President Trump's border crackdown is delivering real wins—nine straight months of zero releases at the southern border, encounters down 93% from the Biden-era highs. It's protecting jobs like Hank's might have been, if we'd had this spine back then. But now, with Congress barreling toward a February 17 funding deadline for the Department of Homeland Security, the swamp creatures in Washington are threatening another shutdown. If they succeed, it'll be everyday Americans who pay the price, not the elites in D.C. cocktail circuits.

Let's start with the good news, because there is some, and it's the kind that hits home for towns like Millbrook. The Department of Homeland Security announced last week that January saw border encounters at just under 200,000— a staggering drop from the 2.5 million annual peaks under the previous administration. That's not spin; it's straight from DHS's own release on February 4. For nine months running, zero migrants have been released into the interior while awaiting hearings, thanks to Trump's revival of the "remain in Mexico" policy and expansions to the border wall. Mass deportations are ramping up, with ICE targeting criminal actors first, as laid out in the White House's recent executive order emphasizing national security. On X, Trump's allies are rightly hyping this as a milestone: one post from @SavngtheRepublc noted how Fox News is covering the Mississippi immigration crackdowns while CNN peddles "race hustling" narratives, racking up thousands of likes from folks tired of the selective outrage.

This isn't about building walls for walls' sake—it's about safeguarding American wages and communities. In manufacturing hubs like Ohio, unchecked immigration has undercut union jobs for decades. The Economic Policy Institute estimates that low-wage immigrant labor depresses pay for native-born workers in construction and production by up to 5% in high-immigration states. I've seen it firsthand: after the plant closed, Millbrook's unemployment spiked to 12%, and the temp agencies filled spots with day laborers bused in from cities. Trump's enforcement is flipping that script. By keeping encounters low and deportations steady, we're reducing the labor glut that keeps bosses from hiring locals at fair rates. It's America First in action—prioritizing the Hank Millers over corporate profits shipped overseas.

Of course, the critics will howl. Democrats like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are already framing this as heartless xenophobia, pushing for "reforms" that would limit ICE raids and expand amnesty pathways. On CBS's Face the Nation yesterday, Rep. Tony Gonzales, a Republican from Texas, urged compromise to avoid a shutdown, while Sen. Mark Warner warned of political fallout. And sure enough, a special election upset in Texas last week saw Democrats flip a seat, with voters citing backlash against "hard-line enforcement." The media's eating it up: The Guardian called it a sign of "voter fatigue" with Trump's agenda, and Al Jazeera tied the standoff to global migration risks, painting the U.S. as the villain in a humanitarian drama.

They'll say I'm stoking division, that borders are about compassion, not economics. Fine, let's talk compassion—for the American families sidelined by this mess. Open borders didn't help the migrants; it exploited them, funneling them into shadowy jobs while driving down pay for Black and Latino workers here too. Under Biden, illegal immigration surged, contributing to a 2% rise in Black unemployment in manufacturing states, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Trump's policies are reversing that: encounters are 93% below historic averages, meaning fewer families torn apart by cartel violence spilling over, and fewer communities strained by overcrowded schools and hospitals. As one X user, @realAnn_29, put it bluntly: "No one gives a bleep about [the left's] selective outrage" on enforcement. That post got 2.4K likes because it rings true—Washington's elites lecture from ivory towers, but they don't live in the factory towns bearing the brunt.

Now, the funding crisis: Congress reconvenes on the next legislative day, and without a deal by mid-February, DHS—which oversees ICE and Customs and Border Protection—faces another shutdown. This would be the third in recent years, and it's pure sabotage. Democrats want to tie funding to their reform wishlist: caps on deportations, more due process delays that amount to catch-and-release by another name. Republicans, led by Trump allies, demand clean funding to keep the momentum. The stakes? A shutdown means furloughs for border agents, halted operations, and chaos at ports that could spike prices on everything from produce to auto parts. Remember the 2018-2019 shutdown? It cost the economy $11 billion and idled 800,000 federal workers, many in blue-collar roles. In Millbrook, that meant delayed Small Business Administration loans for folks trying to start local shops—real pain for real people.

Trump's team knows the playbook. The White House rapid response account on X is touting border security as a cornerstone of national security, linking it to broader wins like the 5.6% GDP growth clip that's circulating (though that's more tariff talk for another day). But the president himself has been clear: in a recent YouTube address, he vowed to "nationalize" enforcement if Congress drags its feet, echoing his push on midterms but focused here on the border. Critics like Rep. Adam Schiff are already crying foul, posting videos warning that Trump is "continuing to cheat" the system—his clip hit 4K likes, but it's the same old fearmongering that ignores the data. DHS isn't "cheating"; it's succeeding where the swamp failed for years.

Look, I get the counterarguments. Some Republicans, like Gonzales, worry that overreach could alienate moderates ahead of the 2026 midterms, where races for secretaries of state in swing states like Georgia and Arizona are already heating up. Pundits at Eurasia Group rank U.S. political instability as the top global risk for 2026, and a shutdown would fuel that fire. Even on the right, there's grumbling about implementation hiccups—courts are slowing some deportations, and the Texas flip shows enforcement can boomerang if not messaged right. But here's the rub: half-measures got us the Biden border disaster. Trump's wall expansions and zero-release policy are working because they're unapologetic. Compromising now would be like handing the keys back to the cartels and the cheap-labor lobby.

We need to fund DHS fully—no strings, no amnesty riders. Pour those dollars into more agents, better tech, and finishing the wall, not into endless hearings that let criminals walk. Congress should act before February 17, or voters in places like Millbrook will remember who shut down security for political games. This isn't about racism or walls; it's about jobs, wages, and giving working Americans a fighting chance. Trump's border wins prove we can secure the line without apology—now let's keep the momentum before the swamp drowns it in shutdown drama.

In the end, as I watch from my porch in Millbrook, where the old factory lot still sits empty, I'm reminded: security starts at home. Enforce the borders, protect the workers, and maybe, just maybe, we can rebuild what offshoring and open doors tore down. Demand better from Washington—your family's future depends on it.

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Tucker McAllister is a former mayor of Millbrook, Ohio and writes on trade, immigration, and working-class America.

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