here is what i think we need to look at. a couple things. first, this executive order, until we really know what s in there, really it s symbolism so that donald trump can say i m following through on one of my biggest campaign promises. the ironic thing here, carol, do you remember how much republicans hemmed and hawed and screamed when president obama tried to do something on immigration policy through executive orders. they said no, you can t do that, immigration policy has got to go through congress. what trump is doing here, he is trying to change immigration policy with the wall, with adding border patrol agents, adding i.c.e. agents, and that needs to go through congress. at the end of the day, the cost of this has got to go through congress. the other point i would say is we need mexico, not just because they re our second largest trading partner and we need our exports to go to them, but if trum is going to really renegotiate nafta, we don t want
them walking away from the table. so this is something where the relationship with mexico is a very complicated and what is becoming a very delicate issue. donald trump is really simplifying this, and with him, it s all high per bowly. it s build the wall and that s it. it s not that simple. it s a very complicated issue. let s talk about the hieb hyperbole. david, is this a symbolic gesture because many of his supporters feel so passionate about this? as with a lot of things with president trump, carol, we don t really know the answer to that question. as you said, the border is 2,000 miles long. there s krchbtly about 300 miles offense. that leaves a lot of space to build some wall if you want. he could build a mile of wall, ten miles, 20 miles of wall and say, look, i built my wall. we don t know really how much he wants to build.
the short term will be effective. cnn s ed lavandera talked with a woman near brownsville, texas. every night 88-year-old pachl la taylor out of compassion leaves bottled water outside her home for migrants moving north and the border patrol agents chasing them. she s lived a stone s throw from the border since 1946. when the border fence was built nearly ten years ago north of the river, she found herself on the south side, between the wall and mexico. you re a little bit of no man s land. my son-in-law say we live in a gated community. you have to laugh about it. reporter: taylor voted for trump and wants to see illegal immigration controlled. she once found an undocumented migrant hiding from border patrol agents in her living room. she warns the rest of the country that a wall won t work. that wall is not going to stop them. if it s 20-feet high, they ll
get a 21-foot ladder. donald trump wants to build a more powerful wall. i want mr. trump i will feed him if he will come down here and talk to the people. there are other challenges, too, like how do you build the wall where the terrain looks like that, rugged, steep and changing. david louder, jeffrey lord, and maria cardona back with me. i want to talk about the relationship between mexico and the united states. why is that important to americans? of course, mexico is one of our two closest neighbors. it s become a major trading partner for the united states. there are millions of americans of mexican dissent. and the health of the mexican economy is extremely important to the united states, particularly the southwest, california, texas, arizona. increasingly to the country at large, if mexico is in good
partial wall, some fencing? would they be willing to pay for it? i think they want a wall, a physical wall that is unbreachable that works, that keeps people out of this country who should not be here and that everybody else who wants to come in comes in, as he said frequently, through the door in the wall, as it were, comes in legally. this entire country is composed of dissen dents can ts of immig. i don t think they would be dissatisfied as all. momenting from now the opening bell will ring on wall street and we re expecting a major milestone to happen there. christine romans is here and eagerly awaiting this because she is a financial nerd. christine? oh, we re going to go to break. we ll be right back with the opening bell.