http://www.elpasotimes.com/ci_15956832

Obama protesters corner busy intersection
By Alex Hinojosa and Marty Schladen
El Paso Times
Posted: 09/01/2010 12:00:00 AM MDT

Demonstrators could not get anywhere near President Barack Obama when he appeared at Fort Bliss on Tuesday, but they tried to make their voices heard anyway.

A large crowd turned out at the intersection of Airway Boulevard and Montana Avenue to protest U.S. immigration policy, or its lack. A much smaller group demonstrated Downtown to protest the nation's involvement in foreign wars.

About 150 protesters from the Border Network for Human Rights held signs saying Obama and George W. Bush have been pretty much the same when it comes to immigration.

Several were undocumented immigrants fighting for amnesty.

Obama visited the Army post on Tuesday to talk about Iraq. But the protesters wanted to push immigration onto the president's agenda.

"He promised that we would pass an immigration reform, and he has yet to deliver on that promise," said Louie Gilot, a spokeswoman for the organization. "We want him to give us the changes he promised."

Several passers-by honked in support while several shouted at them to "Go back home!"

Fort Bliss soldiers on their way to lunch also caught a glimpse of the protest.

"I don't think they should protest so close to the base,"Pvt. Mindy Wunning said. "There's a lot of soldiers coming out to lunch right now, and for me this feels like a slap in the face. They should respect the policies of our commander in chief."

At San Jacinto Plaza, about a dozen people quietly held signs telling the commander in chief what his policy should be.

"Thanks for health care reform, ending the war in Iraq," said a sign held by Sister Betty Campbell. "Now end USA war in Afghanistan."

Campbell said she has been crossing the border from her residence in Juárez every Friday since 2003 to demonstrate against the Iraq War.

"It's an illegal war, and it should never have happened," said Campbell, who added that the same is true of the war in Afghanistan.

Joe and Merlyn Heyman and their adult son, Robert, also were on hand. The Heymans believe money going to Iraq and Afghanistan should be used to deal with social problems at home in the U.S. The Iraq War in particular was illegitimate, Merlyn Heyman said.

"It was based on lies, which is not to say the troops didn't do everything they could," she said.
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Just the idea that Obama was here in El Paso made my stomach churn.
You'd of thought that the jerk would have at least spent some time on observing what is happening on our border but no. Too busy giving himself all the credit for leaving Iraq to even care.