Apparently, Cain has proposed an electrified border fence before so his mentioning it on the stump is not a total surprise.

New York Times:

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain said Saturday that part of his immigration policy would be to build an electrified fence on the country's border with Mexico that could kill people trying to enter the country illegally.

The remarks, which came at two campaign rallies in Tennessee as part of a barnstorming bus tour across the state, drew loud cheers from crowds of several hundred people at each rally. At the second stop, in Harriman, Tenn., Mr. Cain added that he also would consider using military troops "with real guns and real bullets" on the border to stop illegal immigration.

The remarks were among the most pointed yet by Mr. Cain about illegal immigration, and they come as he is enjoying a surge in national political polls on the back of his victory in a recent Florida straw poll. They also follow on remarks made by Representative Michele Bachmann on Saturday during a speech on illegal immigration in Iowa, in which she also advocated a border fence.

It is not the first time that Mr. Cain has floated the idea of an electrified fence. He has told the story many times of a caller to his former radio show who chastised him for talking about building a border fence, saying that such an idea was impractical. Mr. Cain often says he told the caller that he had recently returned from China, and if the Chinese could build the Great Wall then America could build a border fence.

Note to Mr. Cain: It took several centuries to build the Great Wall - a structure that actually is 5 separate walls that were eventually connected - more or less. Unfortunately for the Chinese, it worked about as well as our current efforts to keep out illegals.

What is surprising about Cain's proposal is that putting enough juice through the fence to kill people is horrifically expensive, not to mention horrifically wrong.

The punishment should fit the crime. Killing people for trying to cross a border is like killing someone for trespassing. Build a fence if you wish. Assign a border patrol every mile or so if you think that's necessary. But killing people with electricity or bullets for a minor crime (there are no criminal penalties for illegal entry) is beyond the pale.

There are other means to reduce and even halt illegal immigration, including putting employers in jail who knowingly hire them. No jobs - no illegals. Also, getting rid of sanctuary cities and promptly deporting those who have broken the law when they are discovered whether it be as a result of a traffic stop or a check of school records as Alabama wishes to do, is a far more humane and justifiable means to address the problem.

Cain may get cheers from some opponents of illegal immigration, but it's a cheap way to get applause. We can solve the problem without making orphans of children or cause parents to lose a child.