*** Election Night Livewire *** America Decides: Donald Trump or Kamala Harris?

Americans are voting everywhere coast to coast on Tuesday deciding who the nation’s next Commander-in-Chief will be, former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris.

This whirlwind election, where the former president, a Republican, seeks to return to the office he left four years ago faces off against a vice president who supplanted her party’s president as the Democrat nominee without a primary after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race this summer, comes to a close finally.

The seven major battleground states everyone is watching are North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. To win the White House, a candidate needs to win 270 electoral votes. This photo-finish presidential race is and has been for weeks described by all sides and observers as “close” and “down to the wire.” Who Americans elect as their president will have major implications for the nation and every major issue facing the country, as well as for the world as a whole.

In addition to the presidency, the majorities in both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House are on the line. Republicans see a clear pathway to the Senate majority, but Democrats see a clear pathway to a House majority. Which party controls either or both could go a very long way to either jumpstarting the agenda of who wins the White House, or tying the hands of the next president, who will be sworn in on January 20, 2025, at the inauguration.

Follow along here on Breitbart News for live breaking news, analysis, and results as they stream in from all around the country.

UPDATE 12:37 a.m. ET:

CNN has now joined others in projecting Donald Trump has won Georgia. That puts Trump on the cusp of the presidency.

UPDATE 12:36 a.m. ET:

While Republicans have taken the U.S. Senate and Donald Trump is likely to win the presidency, the U.S. House majority hangs in the balance. Based on Associated Press and New York Times race calls so far and where Republicans lead close races that have yet to be called, Republicans are likely to take at least 215 seats in the House. There are several close House races beyond those, more than a dozen or so, so Republicans could very well hold their slim House majority and possibly even add to it. It’s unclear if that picture will come together fully this evening, but House Speaker Mike Johnson is reportedly en route from his home in Louisiana to West Palm Beach to join Trump’s party and has reportedly told people the House majority will expand.

UPDATE 12:23 a.m. ET:

In Montana’s U.S. Senate race, with 16 percent reporting, Republican Tim Sheehy leads huge–59 percent to 39 percent–over Democrat Sen. Jon Tester. It’s early there, but it’s hard to see Tester hang on in this one.

UPDATE 12:09 a.m. ET:

With 77 percent reporting in Wisconsin, Trump leads by about 100,000 votes and has 51 percent to Harris’s 47 percent. With 48 percent reporting in Michigan, Trump leads by well more than 130,000 votes and has 52 percent to Harris’s 47 percent. In Pennsylvania, with 85 percent reporting Trump leads by more than 150,000 votes and has 51 percent to Harris’s 48 percent.

It’s beginning to look very tough for Harris to have a path back to leads in any of these states. Trump, if he locks in Arizona where he also leads, only needs one of them.

UPDATE 12:02 a.m. ET:

Kamala Harris and her campaign are coming to terms with the likelihood she has lost the election:

UPDATE 11:59 p.m. ET:

The GOP has won control of the United States Senate.

Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) came back and won against her challenger, putting the GOP over the top to 51 seats. GOP candidates have good shots in several more seats. This could get really bad for Democrats tonight.

UPDATE 11:58 p.m. ET:

The New York Times reports that the Harris campaign HQ shut off the sound on the televisions at her watch party:

The Harris campaign just shut off the sound on the TVs at her watch party and replaced it with music after a guest on CNN said tonight felt “more like 2016 than 2020.” The crowd has significantly thinned here and the mood feels seriously downcast.

UPDATE 11:57 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump has won Maine’s second congressional district:

UPDATE 11:48 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump has won the battleground state of Georgia:

But Kamala Harris, per the AP, has won the state of Virginia:

UPDATE 11:33 p.m. ET:

Republican Bernie Moreno has ousted Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio. Assuming Republicans take one more, or hold Nebraska’s seat that Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) represents which is surprisingly close tonight, they will retake the U.S. Senate majority.

UPDATE 11:32 p.m. ET:

The Harris campaign is in shambles:

UPDATE 11:20 p.m. ET:

AP and NYT call North Carolina for Trump. By AP’s count, he has secured 230 electoral votes to Harris’s 179.

UPDATE 11:17 p.m. ET:

Democrats flip a New York House seat. Incumbent Rep. Brandon Williams was caught on tape threatening a former staffer in 2023.

UPDATE 11:15 p.m. ET:

Detroit Free Press reporter says Kamala is struggling in an area of Dearborn that Biden overwhelmingly won in 2020.

UPDATE 11:11 p.m. ET:

NYT reports that Harris’s campaign is telling staff to “get some sleep” and check back on the results in “Blue Wall” swing states in the early morning hours:

In a memo sent to the Harris campaign staff and forwarded to The Times, Jen O’Malley Dillon, the campaign chief, said that the race will not come into focus until the early morning hours, when several states in the so-called Blue Wall, including Wisconsin and Michigan, share more complete voter data. She also suggested that staffers get some rest. “This is what we’ve been built for, so let’s finish up what we have in front of us tonight, get some sleep, and get ready to close out strong tomorrow,” she wrote. This is certainly a contrast with the bullish mood emanating from the Trump team.

UPDATE 11:09 p.m. ET:

ABC’s Jon Karl drops a massive wet blanket on hopeful Harris fans: “I’m hearing from several Democrats invested in this campaign that things are looking very bad for Kamala.”

UPDATE 11:07 p.m. ET:

Polls have closed in all states except for Alaska and Hawaii. AP has already called Idaho for Trump, California and Washington for Harris. AP has also called the California Senate race for Democrat Adam Schiff.

UPDATE 10:53 p.m. ET:

CNN is reporting that “silence” is coming from Kamala Harris’s campaign, “looking for bright spots.” But there is not much to find there. Kamala Harris is in very big trouble.

UPDATE 10:52 p.m. ET:

It’s early still in all three states, but Republican Senate candidates Tim Sheehy, Mike Rogers, and David McCormick lead Montana, Michigan, and Pennsylvania respectively.

UPDATE 10:45 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump has now taken the lead in Michigan. With 26 percent reporting according to the New York Times, Trump has a 16,000 vote lead over Harris. He’s at 49.8 percent and she’s at 48.5 percent. This is getting bad for Harris.

UPDATE 10:35 p.m. ET:

It’s early in Minnesota with just 4 percent reporting, but Donald Trump is currently leading Kamala Harris by more than 20,000 votes–59 percent to 38 percent. This will tighten, but this could get really embarrassing for Harris because her running mate Tim Walz is the governor of Minnesota.

UPDATE 10:34 p.m. ET:

In all-important Pennsylvania, Donald Trump has extended his lead to a full 3 percent–he’s at 51 percent and Harris is down at 48 percent–and more than 100,000 votes. Things are beginning to look very gloomy for Harris.

UPDATE 10:33 p.m. ET:

With 74 percent reporting in Virginia now, Kamala Harris has retaken a very slight 0.2 percent lead over Trump. It’s definitely not over there. Watch Virginia closely.

UPDATE 10:30 p.m. ET:

With 91 percent reporting in Georgia per the New York Times, Trump leads 51 percent to 48 percent–and he’s up by more than 150,000 votes. It’s becoming time that it may be mathematically impossible for Harris to win Georgia. Expect networks to begin calling it soon.

UPDATE 10:28 p.m. ET:

Trump is performing VERY strongly in New York, particularly in certain boroughs in the city but also among Jewish voters:

UPDATE 10:25 p.m. ET:

NBC News and Decision Desk HQ have now formally called Iowa for Trump. That’s six electoral votes, and egg all over the face of “gold standard” pollster Ann Selzer. We’ll see what the final margin there is when all the votes are in, but she was projecting a Harris victory there and that did not happen.

UPDATE 10:13 p.m. ET:

Republicans have actually flipped the governor’s mansion in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico.

UPDATE 10:12 p.m. ET:

The first results in Arizona are in, and with 36 percent reporting Trump has a lead of less than 100 votes. It’s early there, but things look strong for Trump.

UPDATE 10:09 p.m. ET:

With 48 percent reporting per the New York Times in Pennsylvania, Trump has taken a clear lead over Harris. Trump is up by more than a full percent, 50.1 percent to 48.9 percent, and by about 40,000 votes.

UPDATE 10:06 p.m. ET:

With 66 percent reporting in Virginia, Trump continues to lead by more than 50,000 votes–50 percent to 48 percent. This is five alarm fire territory for Harris. Rumor has it that Gov. Glenn Youngkin is telling people Trump might be able to win it.

UPDATE 10:02 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump has taken the lead now in Wisconsin over Harris, with 36 percent reporting, according to the Times. Trump leads by more than a full percent about 14,000 votes.

UPDATE 10:00 p.m. ET:

Polls have now closed in Montana, Nevada, and Utah.

UPDATE 9:38 p.m. ET:

Decision Desk HQ has called North Carolina for Trump:

That’s a massive boost for him. No network has called it yet, and the Associated Press has not yet either. But it seems likely to be formally called and soon. The first battleground state is likely to go to Trump.

UPDATE 9:35 p.m. ET:

With 55 percent reporting in North Carolina now per the Times, Trump has taken a nearly 100,000 vote lead over Harris. He’s up 51 percent to 48 percent there.

UPDATE 9:33 p.m. ET:

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has won reelection in Texas, defeating Democrat Collin Allred, per Fox News. Also per Fox News, former Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) has won New Hampshire’s governor race, holding that office for the GOP.

What’s more, in Pennsylvania amazingly, exit polls show Trump actually leading among those who believe there is a threat to democracy–but Harris leads among those who believe democracy is secure? Talk about backwards expectations:

UPDATE 9:29 p.m. ET:

With 76 percent in in Georgia per the Times, Trump has an approximately 190,000 vote lead–and is up 5 percent–with 52 percent to Harris’s 47 percent. Things are looking dire for Harris in the Peach State.

UPDATE 9:19 p.m. ET:

With just 3 percent reporting in Wisconsin, Trump has a lead over Harris by about 20,000 votes. He’s at 61 percent to her 38 percent. It’s really early there this will tighten, but strong start off the bat for Trump.

UPDATE 9:16 p.m. ET:

Exit polls are looking horrible for Harris in both Wisconsin and Michigan:

UPDATE 9:10 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump has won the state of Ohio, per the Associated Press. That’s a massive victory.
UPDATE 9:09 p.m. ET:

With 49 percent reporting in Ohio’s U.S. Senate race, Republican Bernie Moreno has taken a lead over Democrat incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown–leading by about 30,000 votes or so. Moreno’s 49.3 percent is more than a full percent better than Brown’s 47.9 percent.

UPDATE 9:04 p.m. ET:

According to the New York Times, in Virginia, with 51 percent reporting, Trump has taken a slightly less than 30,000 vote lead over Harris. It’s still a state leaning to the Democrats per the Times but the fact Trump is up right now–49.8 percent to 48.5 percent–probably has the Harris campaign uneasy.

UPDATE 9:02 p.m. ET:

Trump has won Texas per many network projections including CNN and Fox News, and Cruz continues to extend his lead in the Lone Star State Senate race.

UPDATE 9:00 p.m. ET:

Polls have now closed in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

UPDATE 8:53 p.m. ET:

In Texas, with 52 percent reporting in the U.S. Senate race between Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Democrat Rep. Collin Allred, Cruz has a comfortable and growing lead of more than 200,000 votes–51 percent to 48 percent. This is the next step for Republicans to retake the Senate majority, for Cruz to win.

UPDATE 8:44 p.m. ET:

With 21 percent reporting in North Carolina now, Trump has blown open a big lead there and is up by 7 points–53 percent to 46 percent.

UPDATE 8:42 p.m. ET:

With 44 percent reporting in Virginia, Trump is less than 8,000 votes behind Harris. Harris is at 49.3 percent and Trump is at 49 percent. The Times says this is a lean Democrat state, but that’s way closer than Harris would like at this point.

UPDATE 8:40 p.m. ET:

The Harris campaign is frantically using celebrities to urge emergency turnout efforts among college students in battlegrounds–even having them FaceTime call college kids in line, and in some cases show up there:

UPDATE 8:36 p.m. ET:

With 14 percent reporting now in North Carolina, Trump has moved ahead of Harris by less than 20 votes. They’re both at 49.5 percent, and the Times still rates it as a tossup. It’s early here, but Trump’s team believes they have the edge.

UPDATE 8:31 p.m. ET:

With 54 percent reporting in Georgia, the New York Times says that it is now leaning Republican. Trump has an 11 percent lead–55 percent to 44 percent–with nearly 300,000 more votes than Harris.

UPDATE 8:30 p.m. ET:

Polls have closed in Arkansas.

UPDATE 8:28 p.m. ET:

Trump won independents in Pennsylvania, per NBC exit polls:

UPDATE 8:15 p.m. ET:

Hispanic men are going for Trump by double digits according to exit polling, a massive, massive swing from 2020:

UPDATE 8:11 p.m. ET:

Marijuana and abortion amendments have now formally failed in Florida, a massive win for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis:

UPDATE 8:09 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump now has a 70 percent chance of winning the entire election, per Decision Desk HQ:

UPDATE 8:07 p.m. ET:

Republicans have made absolutely historic gains in Hispanic stronghold Miami:

UPDATE 8:02 p.m. ET:

Trump, as expected, has won the state of Florida as well as several red states that were just called for Trump in addition. This is massive.

UPDATE 8:00 p.m. ET:

Polls have now closed in all of Florida, and most importantly in Pennsylvania. They have also closed in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Tennessee.

UPDATE 7:59 p.m. ET:

There are majorly positive signs for Trump in parts of Virginia:

UPDATE 7:57 p.m. ET:

While North Carolina’s presidential results are far too early to call still with just 3 percent reporting, Fox News has called North Carolina’s governor race for Democrat Josh Stein. This is not a surprise and totally expected given the major problems that plagued Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s campaign.

UPDATE 7:53 p.m. ET:

This is a major issue for Harris and a boon for Trump in Georgia:

UPDATE 7:48 p.m. ET:

Trump’s Georgia chances just went up yet again:

UPDATE 7:45 p.m. ET:

While it’s still early, Georgia is beginning to look very strong for Donald Trump and it’s becoming harder and harder to see Harris winning the state:

UPDATE 7:42 p.m. ET:

In Florida’s U.S. Senate race, Republican Sen. Rick Scott is like Trump putting up dominant numbers and viewers should expect a formal call as soon as the polls close in the western part of the state. That’s an important development as taking the U.S. Senate majority for Republicans means holding Florida and Texas, and flipping West Virginia plus either Ohio or Montana. In Ohio, with just 1 percent reporting, Republican Bernie Moreno has a lead over incumbent Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown.

UPDATE 7:36 p.m. ET:

The AP has called West Virginia’s U.S. Senate race for Republican Gov. Jim Justice, and the governor’s race for GOP Attorney General Patrick Morrisey. That’s a U.S. Senate pickup, as expected, for Republicans.

UPDATE 7:33 p.m. ET:

With 71 percent reporting in Florida, Trump has a more than 600,000 vote lead–and is up by 9 percent. It’s very likely this state gets called right at 8 p.m. ET when the polls close in the western part of the state.

UPDATE 7:30 p.m. ET:

Polls have just closed in West Virginia, Ohio, and North Carolina.

CNN projects West Virginia goes to Trump.

UPDATE 7:25 p.m. ET:

With 1 percent in in Virginia now, Harris has moved in front. Long way to go there.

UPDATE 7:23 p.m. ET:

This is an absolutely abysmal number for Kamala Harris:

UPDATE 7:18 p.m. ET:

Trump has opened an early lead over Harris in Georgia 51 percent to 49 percent with 3 percent reporting. It’s early there.

But, in Indiana, the AP just called the U.S. Senate race for Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN), who will be the next U.S. Senator from Indiana:

UPDATE 7:16 p.m. ET:

With 42 percent reporting in Florida, Trump has a massive lead–52 percent to Harris’s 47 percent. Remember, the extremely red panhandle still has polls open for another 45 minutes. Florida, while not formally called yet, is shaping up to be a bloodbath for Democrats.

Meanwhile, just a few votes are in in Virginia and Trump has the lead there too with just over 5 thousand votes to Harris’s just over 3,400 votes. Less than 1 percent is in there so this will dramatically change. But the energy is clearly there for Trump this evening and lagging for Harris.

UPDATE 7:12 p.m. ET:

Donald Trump big time won independent voters in Georgia according to exit polling:

CNN’s panel led by Chris Wallace was flabbergasted at this result, since Biden won independents there last time. This is bad news for Harris.

UPDATE 7:08 p.m. ET:

The early numbers out of Duval County, FL, usually a good tell for how Georgia will go, is very strong for Trump and weak for Harris:

With election day numbers, Trump’s number here will likely rise. Duval tends to be a little left of Georgia in the end.

UPDATE 7:03 p.m. ET:

AP has called Indiana for Trump though so that’s a lock:

This means according to AP, Trump has 19 electoral votes and Harris has just 3. More race calls are likely coming soon. More results are coming soon in key states.

UPDATE 7:00 p.m. ET:

CNN projects Trump wins Kentucky and that Harris wins Vermont. That puts Trump in the lead over Harris. CNN says Indiana is still too close to call but Trump has a more than 20 percent lead there.

UPDATE 7:00 p.m. ET:

Polls are now closed in Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina, Vermont, parts of Florida, and the rest of Indiana and Kentucky. Expect results from each soon.

There are issues at several Georgia precincts where alleged un-credible “bomb threats,” according to CNN, has forced a handful of precincts to remain open for anywhere from 20 extra minutes to less than an hour extra.

UPDATE 6:56 p.m. ET:

There’s a “lid” at the White House, meaning Biden is done making planned public appearances for the day:

UPDATE 6:48 p.m. ET:

At 7 p.m. ET, polls close in Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina, Vermont, parts of Florida, and the rest of Indiana and Kentucky.

CNN exit polls in battleground Georgia show the most important issue there for voters is the economy, with 40 percent saying that. Only 28 percent said “democracy” was the most important issue, a potential harbinger of bad news for Harris.

Republicans are very confident of Trump’s chances in Georgia on the precipice of the polls closing, with many telling Breitbart News they are close to certain it is a lock.

UPDATE 6:36 p.m. ET:

The Saint Johns County, Florida, GOP chairman Denver Cook told Breitbart News that with about a half hour until the polls close on the east part of Florida, GOP turnout is near 90 percent. That’s astoundingly high. Those numbers are incredible. That kind of energy is likely to translate across the country for Trump.

UPDATE 6:30 p.m. ET:

The Washington Times is reporting that Joe Biden will skip Kamala Harris’s election night party.

UPDATE 6:27 p.m. ET:

The Harris campaign is seemingly grasping at straws here:

Meanwhile, CNN is reporting it found lots of silent Trump voters in Virginia:

If Trump is competitive in Virginia, this could be a very bad night for Democrats.

UPDATE 6:26 p.m. ET:

CNN has called Indiana and Kentucky for Trump. The fact the calls came so early is incredible for him.

UPDATE 6:14 p.m. ET:

Some concerns are emerging with turnout among Democrat-heavy cities in key battleground states:

UPDATE 6:05 p.m. ET:

Trump’s favorability across racial lines is as such per exit polling:

For whatever it’s worth, a lot of confidence at Trump HQ right now:

And CNN is panicking:

UPDATE 6:00 p.m. ET:

Polls are now closed in parts of Indiana and Kentucky. First results are expected soon.

UPDATE 5:57 p.m. ET:

More signs of possible problems for Harris:

Trump is actually holding his own on abortion:

UPDATE 5:52 p.m. ET:

Less than 10 minutes until the first polls close in parts of Indiana and Kentucky–and exit polls are beginning to stream out showing where voters are on major issues. The general picture is strong for Trump and weak for Harris.

But it is somewhat mixed across the networks.

What’s more, early signs for Harris facing issues in Michigan:

When the first polls close, the reuslts should start coming soon.

Originally Posted At www.breitbart.com

zerohedge
Economics , News , Politics , Science
December 7, 2024
2 views

The Miserable Cost Of An Open Border

Authored by Seth Barron via RealClearPolitics,

The Biden-Harris experiment in dissolving the U.S. border has wrought massive changes to American society, most of which will not be understood for years, if not decades. Since 2021, U.S. border officials have had at least 10 million “encounters” with migrants, many of whom were allowed to enter the country. There is no telling how many more aliens entered the country without encountering enforcement agents. The population of the United States may have increased by as much as 15 million people in just a few years.

This massive flow of humanity crosses multiple national borders, involves every mode of transportation, accounts for billions of dollars paid in fees to smugglers, and describes a fantastically complex economy of suffering and hope. In an effort to get a handle on this human tide, noted muckraker James O’Keefe – known for his hidden camera “gotcha” interviews with abortionists, media executives, progressive nonprofit executives, and other degenerate types – traces the migrant onrush from its source, and seeks to trace the machinery of profit and influence that is conducting it from great removes.

“Line In The Sand,” the resulting documentary, is a remarkable and humane exposition, revealing perspectives and images American audiences have mostly been prevented from seeing. O’Keefe and his intrepid team begin on the U.S. side of the Mexican border, where we witness migrants crossing the border through holes that their guides have cut in a fence that serves as a target as much as a barrier. Infrared cameras show dozens of illegal aliens streaming toward “pick-up” vehicles on the U.S. side while smugglers – presumably cartel members – a few feet away taunt O’Keefe and his group. “What if I were to run up to them right now, what would happen?” O’Keefe asks his guide. “I would highly advise you against that,” he is told, in a classic understatement.

The fact that coyotes and other human traffickers are paid to assist northbound migrants with their passage is no scandal; we all know what their motivations are and why they are doing what they do. But O’Keefe documents multiple examples of U.S. Border Patrol agents standing idly by while illegal aliens cross, virtually under their noses. “Why aren’t you doing anything?” he asks. “Have a good day, guys,” a border agent desultorily responds before driving off in the general direction of the episode. Later, a migrant stands in front of a Border Patrol truck, clearly trying to alert the agents of his intention to surrender, but is studiously ignored until O’Keefe and his team call their attention to him.

There is a kind of sad comedy in the operations of U.S. border security, and O’Keefe is not unsympathetic to the absurd position that border agents have been put in. Trained to defend the national border and to serve as the first line of defense of American soil, these agents have been recommissioned as a perverse Welcome Wagon for illegal aliens, charged with making their undocumented and uninvited entrance to the United States as commodious as possible.

Looking to get deeper into the heart of this migratory avalanche, O’Keefe went deep into Mexico, to the city of Irapuato, about 150 miles northwest of Mexico City. Irapuato is a popular railway junction where thousands of migrants climb aboard “La Bestia,” or “The Beast,” a cargo train that chugs northward toward the United States. In the film’s most remarkable footage, O’Keefe and his team join with migrants, mostly from South and Central America, to ride The Beast, also known as “el Tren del Muerto,” or the Train of Death. O’Keefe talks to the migrants without condescension, asking them their destinations and what they plan to do when they get there, and their concerns about the perilous nature of the journey. We see the film crew race to jump on a moving train and clamber on top to sit in a pile of coal; O’Keefe is shocked at how truly dangerous this small element of the trip is and sympathizes with the migrants’ difficult choices. These scenes are among the film’s most affecting, along with the crew’s random encounter with a little girl who had just crossed the border after journeying from Guatemala by herself. There is a human dimension to illegal immigration, and O’Keefe does not ignore it.

However, there is also an impersonal dimension to this massive population transfer, and O’Keefe determinedly aims to uncover it – to put a face to the institutions and administrators that benefit from the rough injection of millions of people into American society. From government agents to bus companies to nonprofit resettlement groups to private contractors running huge, walled compounds housing thousands of children, O’Keefe doggedly tries to penetrate the mechanics of a system that resolutely hides itself behind a screen of silence, usually in the name of “safety” and “privacy.”

Some of the film’s more comical moments pertain to these segments, such as when the team follows some just-arrived Chinese migrants in San Diego to an employment agency, where other Chinese aliens, already in the country for several months, complain that it’s much harder to live in the United States than they had imagined. O’Keefe tries to sniff out a connection between the owner of the agency and more powerful actors, but it emerges that there really isn’t much going on; in fact, the owner asks O’Keefe if he knows of a way to apply for government grants.

Elsewhere, O’Keefe tries to get information about the operations of several huge residential centers for unaccompanied minors and tries to spin their refusal to give him access to the centers or submit to interviews as evidence of the existence of vast, government-funded child sex trafficking networks. But it seems more likely, though no less troubling, that the open borders policy of the last four years has created a tremendous humanitarian crisis of alien children roaming the continent by themselves, and the government is probably trying to keep them from becoming prey to sex traffickers while they sort out where to send them. Though O’Keefe does not uncover a salacious network of child predators, his vigorous pursuit of the truth does reveal the existence of a large, shadowy, government-funded, and lucrative system of child “welfare.”

So, “Line In The Sand” is correct in the larger sense that billions of dollars are being spent managing this human flow, and many people are getting rich off of it. The last thing these parasitical administrators of the nonprofit industrial complex want is for the border to close. O’Keefe does a great job of capturing in real time the corruption of a local New York City nonprofit called La Jornada, whose leader, Pedro Rodriguez, evidently perpetrates fraud, demanding fees for services that the city provides for free. O’Keefe also sends a Spanish-speaking reporter undercover into the Roosevelt Hotel, New York City’s main processing center for newly-arrived migrants, which offers him free housing, medical care, and even airplane tickets, even though the reporter explains that he has no identification of any sort. How, O’Keefe asks, in our post 9/11 security-obsessed era, are we to make sense of a system that admits millions of unvetted foreigners into the country, and then offers to fly them anywhere they care to go?

“Line In The Sand” is rough in parts, but intentionally so. Its subject is so sprawling and tangled that a neat and clean representation would be a lie. Even with a nine-figure budget – which this film assuredly did not have – a documentary about the border and the 30 million-footed human swarm that has crossed it would be messy and incomplete. But James O’Keefe and his small team have done something remarkable. They have taken on the decade’s biggest story, given it form, and preserved the humanity of its subjects. It is worth watching.

Seth Barron is a writer in New York and author of the forthcoming “Weaponized from Humanix.”

Tyler Durden
Sat, 12/07/2024 – 17:30