Advocates of unrestricted immigration, environmentalists, some border state officials and even a few congressmen are pushing President-elect Barack Obama to halt construction of the 670-mile fence going up along the Mexican border – or even tear it down completely. Their urgings come despite Obama’s 2006 vote for the Secure Fence Act and the congressional immigration debate drama of 2008 that made it clear the public expects the fence to be built without delay. The anti-fence forces are encouraged because Obama’s pick for secretary of Homeland Security, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, is one of them and may try to halt or further delay construction of the $2 billion barrier.

That would not be a good idea. Even though the souring economy has reduced illegal immigration to its lowest level in 30 years, some 2,000 people still enter the U.S. illegally every day through our still-open southern border. The new administration should also use this temporary lull to crack down on the 45 percent of legal immigrants who overstay their visas. There’s plenty of unemployed Americans seeking work to fill the jobs left behind by those with expired visas.