Its fun to imagine a world where immigrants have easy access to buy newish iPhones, somehow have the technical chops and abilities to load a US digital ID on a phone purchased in another country while in another country, and then waltz across the border.

I see a few small hiccups in this theory.

In the past those problems have been solved by organizations and wealthy individuals trafficking them in, so it's not so crazy a concern IMO.

I've seen my share of coyotes at the local gas station; I live within an hour of the border. It is rare to see an immigrant with any Apple device, much less something recent.

I don't think this article lines up with the reality I've seen myself over the last decade living here.

  To get smuggled across the border by cartel-affiliated “coyotes” (people smugglers) might typically cost $4,000 to $15,000 USD. [AI result]

Adding an iphone into the package is not increasing costs ridiculously. Obviously you won't see them with iPhones unless/until it helps them get into the US so your "I haven't seen them with iPhones" is an empty statement.

> Adding an iphone into the package is not increasing costs ridiculously.

I'm hoping this was some sort of sarcasm; its amusing at least.

Adding an iphone "into the package" like these extremely violent cartels who will steal another cartels group of migrants, demand a ransom, and then execute them when the ransom is refused for being more than the group is worth to them -- is going to "throw in" an iphone with the, I guess, deluxe package? Many are trafficked into indentured servitude to pay off that fee, no one is throwing in an iphone. just wow.

> won't see them with iPhones unless/until it helps them get into the US

The above aside, not sure how or why they would want a tracking device on them and how that is suppose to help them sneak in. Paper is so much easier & cheaper

> Adding an iphone into the package is not increasing costs ridiculously.

This is not a combo meal or "package"

Please, how much time (in years? days? hours?) have you spent near the border to be so sure about your information?

A “hard but not impossible to forge” physical ID seems like an anachronism. Even the new “real id” don’t have RFID chips with crypto. Digital seems both more secure and more convenient; I don’t understand this position.

With the slow down on trade news / "wins" this just seems like the Trump administration leaning on what they think is a winning narrative, immigration.

As usual there's nothing that seems to back this up / no real expert input that proves or supports any of the claims.

"Every accusation is a confession"

Never fails.

He is 100% committed to undo everything that Obama and Biden did.