Thread: 1,200 National Guard troops to be deployed to border

Additionally, the Government of Mexico expects that National Guard personnel ..... will not, in accordance to its legal obligations, conduct activities directly linked to the enforcement of immigration laws.

What nerve!!!!!!!!!

National Guard of the United States
The federally-controlled National Guard as we know it was officially created in ... of increasing the militias' accountability to the colonial government, efficacy, ... and help control traffic and rescue stranded motorists in blizzards ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_G ... ted_States

Troops to the Mexican border: Obama to send 1,200


By ERICA WERNER and JACQUES BILLEAUD
Associated Press
May 25, 2010


WASHINGTON – Under pressure to take action, President Barack Obama is ordering 1,200 National Guard troops to boost security along the U.S.-Mexico border, officials said Tuesday, pre-empting Republican efforts to force a congressional vote to send the troops.

Obama will also request $500 million for border protection and law enforcement activities, according to lawmakers and administration officials.

The president's action comes as chances for comprehensive immigration reform, Obama's long-stated goal, look increasingly dim in this election year. Obama has been all but compelled to do something since Arizona's passage of a tough illegal-immigration law thrust the border problem into the public spotlight.

The National Guard troops will work on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support, analysis and training, and support efforts to block drug trafficking. They will temporarily supplement Border Patrol agents until Customs and Border Protection can recruit and train additional officers and agents to serve on the border, an administration official said.

In 2006, President George W. Bush sent thousands of troops to the border to perform support duties that tie up immigration agents. But that program has since ended, and politicians in border states have called for troops to be sent to curb human and drug smuggling and to deal with Mexico's drug violence that has been spilling over into the United States.

The administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of a public announcement, disclosed the new White House plans shortly after Obama met at the Capitol with Republican senators who pressed him on immigration issues including the question of sending troops to the border.

Arizona Sens. John McCain and Jon Kyl have been urging such a move, and Republicans planned to try to require it as an amendment to a pending war spending bill.

In a speech Tuesday on the Senate floor, McCain said the situation on the U.S.-Mexico border has "greatly deteriorated." He called for 6,000 National Guard troops to be sent, and he asked for $250 million more to pay for them.

"I appreciate the additional 1,200 being sent ... as well as an additional $500 million, but it's simply not enough," McCain said.

Democrats were considering countering McCain's amendment with a proposal of their own after disclosure of the administration plans. The White House wasn't expected to formally send its spending request to Capitol Hill until after the Memorial Day recess, said Kenneth Baer, spokesman for the White House Office of Management and Budget.

A military official said Tuesday that details were still being worked out on the troops' orders and destinations, adding that the timing of their deployment was not yet clear. Also undetermined was which units from which states would deploy.

The Defense Department, which has been jousting with the Homeland Security Department for the better part of a year over the possible deployment, had previously expressed concerns that the troops not be used for law enforcement duties. Pentagon officials are worried about perceptions that the U.S. was militarizing the border.

The administration's plans appear to use Guard troops only in a supporting role, according to the military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details were still being worked out. Some of the troops will be armed, but others will not.

Arizona Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords said the situation on the ground now is different from when Bush deployed the Guard. Arrests have fallen in the Arizona sector and there've been record drug seizures.

She said the border is more violent and law enforcement is outgunned. She and other lawmakers want the troops to be armed â€â€

The Defense Department.....had previously expressed concerns that the troops not be used for law enforcement duties. Pentagon officials are worried about perceptions that the U.S. was militarizing the border.

Some of the troops will be armed, but others will not.

Cecilia Munoz, White House director of intergovernmental affairs, told a group of Spanish-language reporters Tuesday that the National Guard troops would not deal directly with migrants.

Why the hell not???

Additionally, the Government of Mexico expects that National Guard personnel will strengthen US operations in the fight against transnational organized crime that operates on both sides of our common border and that it will not, in accordance to its legal obligations, conduct activities directly linked to the enforcement of immigration laws.

What legal obligation? Did Obama make a deal behind closed doors when Calderon was here?

In a TV interview Congressman Bilbray said, "MOST of the troops are going to Arizona".

But he didn't say were the rest were going.

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http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington ... tion_N.htm

Mexico is determined to continue working on its side of the border to enhance the security and well-being of border communities, and to deter and dismantle organized crime and its links to drug trafficking and human smuggling.

They will, however, continue to print comic books so their illiterates will know how to sneak into the U.S.

I find it interesting that Obama did not call Gov. Brewer to discuss this plan. It was a dem representative that made the announcement.

The Mexican Embassy said Tuesday it hoped the National Guard troops would be used to fight drug cartels and not enforce immigration laws. Mexico has traditionally objected to the use of military forces to control undocumented migration, saying such measures would criminalize migrants and open the way for potential abuse.

The Mexican Embassy has the mistaken belief that our Border Patrol works for them, to control the flow of weapons into Mexico. Never mind those illegals crossing into the U.S. We wouldn't want to make criminals out of the criminals.

We need a Department of De-Fence.

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

We need a Department of De-Fence.