President Trump’s latest proposal is to set up a $25B trust fund to finance the wall funded by the taxpayers. Here’s a better idea. Let’s take this whole project out of the hands of the government, and put it in the hands of the people. We can create a Build the Wall crowdfunding campaign, and make sure it actually gets built. Here’s how:

• The math is pretty simple. About 63M people voted for Trump. $25B/63M voters = $396 per Trump voter.
• We set up a non-profit Build the Wall Foundation that will serve as the escrow for the funds coming from the campaign.
• We set up a Build the Wall campaign website and ask everyone to contribute what they can, with a suggested amount of $396.
• We provide a few perks for the contributors, like “I Built the Wall” hats or t-shirts.
• Once we have raised a minimum amount, for example 20% ($5B) construction can start. If the minimum is not reached in some timeframe, say 90 days, the money will be refunded to contributors out of escrow. Otherwise that money and all subsequent contributions go toward funding the private contractors that will build the wall.

If we crowdfund the wall, all the government needs to do is hire private contractors and get the wall built. If the Congress wanted to be nice, they would make contributions to the Build the Wall Foundation tax deductible. I think the American people who support the wall will gladly make this small financial sacrifice to fund it in order to provide safety and security for their families.

The American people are so tired of listening to dishonest swamp rats argue about how to spend our money. This is the 21st century. The technology exists to bypass them. It’s time we started doing that, and a Build the Wall crowdfunding campaign is the perfect opportunity to try that out.