This article examines why members of the U.S. House of Representatives voted for H.R. 4437, the controversial 2005 bill to construct a 700-mile immigration barrier along the U.S.-Mexican border and to criminalize illegal presence and aid to undocumented immigrants. Logit analysis suggests that being a first-term House member or a Republican and representing a district that was in the South or the West or heavily blue-collar substantially boosted the odds of supporting H.R. 4437. If a member's district was disproportionately Asian, Latino, or, especially, African American, he or she was instead more likely to oppose the measure.
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