Poll: Americans for more border cops, not a fence

CNN
Oct. 25, 2006

Although a majority of Americans support increasing the number of Border Patrol agents along the U.S.-Mexico border, most do not support building a 700-mile fence along the border, according to a CNN poll released Wednesday.

Seventy-four percent of 1,013 poll respondents said they would be in favor of more U.S. agents along the border. But only 45 percent said they wanted a border fence built, according to the survey conducted by Opinion Research Corp. on behalf of CNN.

And while 58 percent said they would support large fines on employers who hire illegal immigrants, 54 percent said they would oppose jail terms for those employers.

More than two-thirds of poll respondents -- 67 percent -- said the number of illegal immigrants in the United States should be decreased. But only 34 percent said all illegal immigrants should be removed.

The numbers for the recent poll were roughly the same as a similar poll conducted in June.

The sampling error in the survey, conducted October 20-23, is plus or minus 3 percentage points.