Trump Wall better than China's, says Trump

John Tory may have had SmartTrack, but Donald Trump has the Trump Wall. His plan to build a 1,914 mile wall was paired back to 1,000 miles at a projected cost of US$8 billion.

Is $8 million per mile enough? According to the Federal Highway Administration, the average cost of building a cinder or concrete sound wall is US$30.78 per square foot.

Surely a wall designed to hold back people, explosives and vehicles, would be taller and much more robust than a highway sound wall. It would need its foundation planted on precarious cliffs and other obstacles requiring unique engineering.

A 30' high wall built at the cost of a sound wall would be $923 per foot. One mile of sound barrier would cost an average of $4,875,000. That's about US$5 billion for 1,000 miles.

An impenetrable Trump Wall built over rough terrain is likely to cost far more than just $3 million per mile extra. It would need to be deep enough to prevent tunnelling, high enough to prevent climbing, and thick enough to resist demolition.

U.S. communities along the Mexican border have had to unfairly compete with untaxed labour offered at rates that don't support American lifestyles. Crime is also a big issue. Perhaps the greatest aspect of Trump Wall is it brings their frustrations to the federal and international levels.

The cost is likely to well exceed Trump's estimate of US$8 billion which he says he will coerce Mexico into paying, all the while being taken out of NAFTA sending export-based business in Mexico into bankruptcy.

Talks about pulling out of NAFTA pose risks to the largest customer and friend of the U.S., Canada. In many years Canada operates at a trade deficit with America - but generally exports and imports is close to 50 / 50. At over $700 billion of trade per year, it's larger than most national economies and no small joke. NAFTA worked here. If U.S. pulls out of NAFTA, a significant amount of U.S. investment in Canada and Mexico will be burned.

Leaving NAFTA may be more difficult to do than Trump has imagined. In Canada NAFTA support is extremely high. NAFTA made businesses operating in Canada more competitive. Our businesses like having access to high-quality suppliers in the U.S., and what is good for an American is good for a Canadian, so why tax the transaction? Canadians have high incomes like Americans, so we don't necessarily compete on labour prices but instead productivity, innovation, resources, taxes and regulations.

The question also remains whether a wall would be an effective tool at preventing illegal immigrants from crossing the border, or if it will be overrun by an onslaught of tunnelling, ladders and explosives.