NPR.

They come from all over the world fleeing violence and conflict, fleeing

political and economic instability. They come from places as close as

Mexico and El Salvador,

and as far as Senegal and China.

What we're talking about are the tens of thousands of people

who arrive at the U.S. Southern border every month,

some who are caught trying to cross into the country

without authorization, and others who present themselves to border agents to apply

for asylum. Now according to U.S. Customs and Border, last year was the third year in a

row these encounters reached a record level.

Politicians on both sides of the aisle have referred to the situation as a border crisis, and when it comes to dealing with it, the people arguing

over what to do often fall in one of two camps. One camp says we need to focus on

addressing the conditions in other countries that cause people to leave,

what migration researchers call push factors.

In other camps says, we have to focus on deterrence and enforcement.

We saw an example of this last week when the

Biden administration announced new limits on asylum claims. But what if both

camps are actually ignoring a major piece of the picture.

This is the indicator from Planet Money, I'm Adrian Ma.

And I'm Whelan Wong.

Today on the show, an economist argues that an overlooked cause and solution to the situation at our southern border has nothing to do with

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