The 9/11 attacks proved three important means for the American society: a) Anti-American terrorists do exist and will continue to be in the foreseeable future; b) the terrorists have the resources to carry attacks; c) the consequences of the attacks will strengthen the terrorism wave (Flynn). The domestic security efforts, previously disapproved by the Americans, became of major importance. One element of the homeland security increased measures after the 9/11 attacks were related to border and point of entry security. In that regard, this paper analyzes the current border security in terms of strengths and issues, providing recommendations on alternative strategies dealing with these issues.
Border and port security are some of the elements of terrorism prevention efforts, along with intelligence, law enforcement, immigration and customs, and other security-related functions (Viotti, Opheim, and Bowen 179). An essential element of the border protection initiatives can be seen related to the issue of immigration. Such fact can be understood, with the terrorists being foreigners who entered the United States, the typical measures included tightening laws, more border patrols, and making the entrance to the United States harder. Laying down the strengths of the border measures can be seen through outlining the characteristics of the border security prior to 9/11, or in this context, the weaknesses that were dealt with after 9/11, which are as follows:
- Quick clearance of passengers.
- De-emphasis of the inspections of people.
- The absence of an entry-exit system.
- The focus is on unauthorized immigration only.
- The absence of terrorist travel pattern training.
Thus, the strengths of increased security measures on the border can be seen in dealing with each of the aforementioned deficiencies of security present prior to 9/11. As a general trend, which implies the established policy, rather than the initial response to the attack, it can be seen that a shift was made from inspections of drugs, unauthorized access, and immigration toward counter-terrorism first and foremost (Heyman and Ackleson 51). Such shift can be seen through the creation of smart borders, managing the risks of transnational terrorism, mainly through filtering and screening functions.
The issues with such increased measures can be seen in casting a wider net of foreigners out of the country, which had an economic implication for the United States. The latter can be seen in the outsourcing waves due to complications of entry as well as overspending on security and alienating immigrant communities and foreign students. The improvements to such strategies can be seen in increasing the focus on intelligence as a preventive enforcement element, with their results being integrated within the procedures of border security control. In that regard, the dilemma of facilitation and control might not be solved completely, but nevertheless, a balance might be maintained between inspection and keeping all foreigners out of the country.