Border fence may have a few holes
No sooner did Congress authorize construction of a 700-mile fence on the U.S.-Mexico border than lawmakers rushed to approve separate legislation that ensures it will never be built as advertised, according to a Washington Post report.
Congress has approved a proposal to build a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border. It would include two layers of fencing, lighting, cameras and sensors. But a few weeks ago the House and Senate gave the Bush administration leeway to distribute the money to a combination of projects — not just the physical barrier along the southern border. The funds may also be spent on roads, technology and “tactical infrastructure” to support the Department of Homeland Security’s preferred option of a “virtual fence,” the Washington Post reports.
GOP congressional leaders have also pledged in writing that Native American tribes, members of Congress, governors and local leaders would get a say in “the exact placement” of any structure, and that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff would have the flexibility to use alternatives “when fencing is ineffective or impractical.”
The loopholes leave the Bush administration with authority to decide where, when and how long a fence will be built, except for small stretches east of San Diego and in western Arizona. President Bush signed the $34.8 billion Homeland security budget bill in Scottsdale, Ariz., without referring to the 700-mile barrier. Instead, he highlighted the $1.2 billion that Congress provided for an unspecified blend of fencing, vehicle barriers, lighting and technology such as ground-based radar, cameras and sensors.
“People want to know that we’re modernizing the border so we can better secure the border,” President Bush said.
Asked whether Homeland Security would build 700 miles of fence, department spokesman Russ Knocke would not say. Instead, he noted that department leaders announced last month that they will spend $67 million to test a remote-sensing “virtual fence” concept on a 28-mile, high-traffic stretch of border south of Tucson over eight months, and then adjust their plans.