Lieberman and Massa are right: Closing the border with Mexico could save lives

Democratic Congressman Eric Massa of New York and Independent-Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut have made a common sense suggestion. A temporary closing of the border might reduce the spread of swine flu and save many lives. Of course, the action would not be politically correct in an era of open borders and could be "bad for the economy" but doesn't public health come first ?

From The Hill's Briefing Room:

The Obama administration and Homeland Security Sec. Janet Napolitano should not have taken closing the border with Mexico off the table as a method to contain swine flu, Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) argued Thursday.

"We urged Secretary Napolitano to please keep that option open. We're not recommending it," Lieberman, the chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, said on Fox News. "It just seems to us that if we get to a point where contagion can be carried by proximity and there are more of the cases in Mexico then we want to keep separate for a while."

While some lawmakers such as Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) have called for a closed border with Mexico, where swine flu cases have run amok, the administration has rejected calls for such a response, reasoning it would damage the political and economic relationship with Mexico.

"If you close the border with Mexico even temporarily, it would have tremendous economic, dislocating effects. It'll also dislocate a lot of personal lives of people who go back and forth most every day," Lieberman explained. "But if we get to a point where public health experts tell us that closing the border temporarily will save lives in this country, then that's a choice that we've got to make."

http://briefingroom.thehill.com/2009/04/30/lieberman-border-closing-should-be-on-the-table/

WHAM-TV News reports:

Congressman Eric Massa (D-NY) is calling on the federal government to close the border with Mexico until flu fears subside.

Congressman Eric Massa wants the American military to seal the Mexican border and he wants stricter screening of travelers to make sure the flu can't spread.

President Barack Obama echoes the advice of the World Health Organization [WHO] when he says health experts do not support closing the border with Mexico. "At this point they have not recommended a border closing. From their perspective, it would be akin to closing the barn door after the horses are out, because we already have cases here in the United States," Obama said.

However, Rep. Eric Massa disagrees with the president; he believes swine flu can spread further.

"The barn door should not be left open for more cases to spread more hot spots, not just in the United States, but throughout the world. This is something that will ultimately help Mexico, as we do what we can do, to contain the spread of disease," Massa said via phone.

Massa acknowledges that it would take a large number of American troops on the border, and he says this has nothing to do with illegal immigrants.

“This is about the hundreds of thousands of people who commute back and forth every single day,” Massa said. “We have to break the chain of transmission. It's a very difficult decision."

Other members of congress from Western New York such as Chris Lee disagree with Massa.
They point out that stopping cross-border travel would have an enormous economic impact, and they defer to the WHO.

Massa said it's not easy to go against the president, but he believes the new flu virus will infect more people if the border remains open.

The congressional Homeland Security Committee says that closing the border is not necessary yet, but some members of Congress do support setting up health screening stations on the southwest border.

http://www.13wham.com/news/local/story/Massa-Calls-for-Closure-of-Mexican-Border-Opposes/3Fqk0lrfzUq7Llk0LkSXcw.cspx