Congress Approves 700 Mile Border Fence

http://www.examiner.com/a-318959~Congre ... Fence.html

WASHINGTON - Republicans will go into the elections with a message that they've made great strides fighting illegal immigration, including authorizing a fence along one-third of the U.S.-Mexico border and making a $1.2 billion down payment on it.

Among its final tasks before leaving to campaign, the Senate on Friday night passed and sent to President Bush a bill authorizing 700 new miles of fencing on the southern border. No one knows how much it will cost, but a separate bill also on the way to the White House makes a $1.2 billion down payment on it. A 14-mile segment of fence under construction in San Diego is costing $126.5 million.

The fence bill was passed by the House two weeks ago. The Senate vote on it Friday night was 80-19.

In addition to money for starting work on the fence, a homeland security bill passed Friday by the House and later by the Senate includes $380 million to hire 1,500 more Border Patrol agents and money to build detention facilities to hold 6,700 more illegal immigrants until they can be deported.

"We have made giant steps in terms of our ability to control illegal immigration," House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, told reporters.

The fence bill became House Republicans' immigration focus in September after they abandoned President Bush's call to bring millions of illegal immigrants into the American mainstream.

In addition to the money in the Homeland Security spending bill, Boehner cited Bush's deployment of the National Guard on the border and more frequent arrests of illegal immigrants at work sites.

"The perception that has been painted mistakenly is that the United States government, our Congress is not delivering to the American people on a huge problem that's out there," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn. "We're active."

Democrats and immigration advocates say Republicans can hardly claim victory.

House Republicans failed to win measures for deporting immigrant gang members and empowering local police to enforce immigration laws. Their biggest obstacle turned out to be another Republican, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the border security achievements trumpeted by Republicans don't measure up to the more comprehensive reforms her party backed. What the GOP calls achievements fall "very far short of what Democrats have proposed over and over and over again," she said.

After a debate that stretched over three months, the Senate in May passed a sweeping immigration bill that combined tougher border enforcement measures with new guest worker programs and a plan to give millions of illegal immigrants already in the U.S. a shot at citizenship.

Despite Bush's ringing endorsement of the measure, the House would have no part of it, sticking to the bill it passed five months earlier that would treat illegal immigrants and people who offer them aid as felons.

Rather than negotiate a compromise with the Senate, Republican leaders plucked out many provisions of the House bill for new votes in both the House and Senate over the past two weeks.

"It's been two years of high visibility, high volume debate in terms of which way to go in the immigration system," said Frank Sharry, executive director of the National Immigration Forum. In the end the debate ended in a tie, he said.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., called the fence "a bumper sticker solution for a complex problem."

"It's a feel-good plan that will have little effect in the real world," he said. "We all know what this is about. It may be good politics, but it's bad immigration policy. That's not what Americans want."

Sens. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., made a 11th-hour appeal to colleagues to include in the fence bill a measure to help the agriculture industry, which relies heavily on undocumented workers.

Those workers have become harder to find because of increased border enforcement and availability of jobs for the workers in construction and other industries, they said. Consumers ultimately will pay the price for that at the grocery store, they added.

"Pickers are few and the growers blame Congress," Craig said, reading a news headline. "The growers ought to blame Congress. They ought to blame a government that has been dysfunctional in an area of immigration that has been problem for decades."

Great news! Now when do they break ground on the fence?! :lol:

Sanity ruled today! :lol:

Yeah whatever. We all know Bush and this do nothing Congress won't fund it. Just another shell game to fool the sheeple into thinking Republicans care when they don't. The vote was 80-19. Why? Because they know they can go on record as for voting for the fence and then they can turn around and not fund it.

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No one knows how much it will cost, but a separate bill also on the way to the White House makes a $1.2 billion down payment on it. A 14-mile segment of fence under construction in San Diego is costing $126.5 million

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It looks like their going to fund it as well! :lol:

Yippee!!

Great work everyone and thank you Congress.

:)

Its still wait and see until its up. We DO need it, to cut down on "REPATRIATED ILLEGALS" no doubt. We HAVE to HAVE IT....

But until its UP AND RUNNING, dont hold your breath......

And if they want AMNESTY in return, they have another thing comming!

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Originally Posted by Judy

Yippee!!

Great work everyone and thank you Congress.

:)

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While I am happy about the fence being funded, I won't be ecstatic until they start enforcing the laws, penalizing illegal employers and I see a marked reduction in the number of illegal faces I see. Don't mean to vent but I work in downtown Chicago and at lunch today I was sitting in an open eating area and granted I was the only one at a table that seated 4 people but these big dirty matted hair and clothes, illegal looking goons just came, sat at the table and started conversing loudly in Spanish. Needless to say not only did I lose my appetite but I was totally livid that these idiots apparently could not speak any English and had absolutely zero manners to boot. I'd like to think that if they spoke English they would have at the very least politely asked if I was waiting for someone to join me or if I minded their dirty, stinky anuses sitting next to me.

From the looks of them, I doubt that they would have anyway.

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Originally Posted by dman1200

Yeah whatever. We all know Bush and this do nothing Congress won't fund it. Just another shell game to fool the sheeple into thinking Republicans care when they don't. The vote was 80-19. Why? Because they know they can go on record as for voting for the fence and then they can turn around and not fund it.

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Will this fence require an Environmental Impact assesment?

If so, most of us will be dead before that gets completed and all the lawsuits are settled.

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Yeah whatever. We all know Bush and this do nothing Congress won't fund it. Just another shell game to fool the sheeple into thinking Republicans care when they don't. The vote was 80-19. Why? Because they know they can go on record as for voting for the fence and then they can turn around and not fund it.

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I don't care what the Senate Republicans reasons were for voting on the fence, I'm just glad they did! As for funding the entire fence, we'll see. I guess you have to crawl before you can walk. Besides that, didn't I hear there is already 1.2 billion dollars worth of fence funded (or will be)? Let's not forget, if not for the Republican majority House and Senate, we would now be digesting the Senate's Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill. Now that is something that would have left a very nasty taste in my mouth! :cry:

Say what you will dman1200, but the fact remains - we have more Republican friends in the Senate and House than we do Democrats - by a wide margin. :wink:

The House legislation designates the locations so I believe that while certain environmental factors could be taken into account and addressed responsibly, I do not believe an Environmental Impact Statement will be required.

Have any of ever heard of a Mexican Garden Spider? They are very large, supposedly non-toxic, yellow with black stripes on them?

They are showing up in our town...frightening looking but apparently harmless.

I guess the Illegales are bringing them in with them. They found a pirahna in one of our streams. The snake head from China is almost about to eliminate our bass.

So...I think we need to do an Environmental Impact Statement on Illegales?

Heh?

:P :P :P

Actually, I'm bugged serious.

:)

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Originally Posted by Judy

So...I think we need to do an Environmental Impact Statement on Illegales?

Heh?

:P :P :P

Actually, I'm bugged serious.

:)

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Of course we should.

We used to, at places like Ellis Island in the East, and Angel Island in the West.

We can't do that now, of course, because it might hurt our "guests" self-esteem.

It is strange. You can't bring most fruit into the US from Hawaii, but there's nothing stopping the illegals from bringing in whatever they choose.

It's a completely insane system, and it's going to kill us all some day.

Here's the list of no votes: NAYs ---19
Akaka (D-HI)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Chafee (R-RI)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Kerry (D-MA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Murray (D-WA)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)

Not Voting - 1
Kennedy (D-MA)

mapwife wrote:

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Here's the list of no votes: NAYs ---19
Akaka (D-HI)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Chafee (R-RI)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Kerry (D-MA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Murray (D-WA)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)

Not Voting - 1
Kennedy (D-MA)

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Why does Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) keep attempting to pass himself off as a Republican? The man is probably as liberal as the most liberal Democrat in the Senate, which is Sen. afraid to vote Ted Kennedy (D-MA). Isn't it something that Kennedy talked the talk against the fence bill, but when it came time to walk the walk - he was nowhere to be found! I'm sure he knew it was a lost cause - and since the man has no principles - he just faded into the shadows. I had no respect for the man before, but now I even have even less (if that's possible). He should have stuck to his guns and voted his talk. Guess he didn't want a "nay" on a national security issue on his voting record. :roll:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld ... -headlines

Senate Approves Border Wall Bill
By Nicole Gaouette
Times Staff Writer

10:12 PM PDT, September 29, 2006

WASHINGTON -- The Senate on Friday approved and sent to President Bush a bill calling for construction of a 700-mile wall along the U.S. border with Mexico, voting overwhelmingly for a project that became the centerpiece of efforts to improve border security and stem illegal immigration.

Bush is expected to sign the measure into law.

"Most immigrants come to America with good intentions, but not all of them," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., in supporting the bill. "We need an enforcement-first approach ... (that) allows us to get full operational control of our border."

The bill, which passed 80-19 and is identical to legislation passed by the House last week, authorizes the building of double-layered fencing in areas around Tecate and Calexico, Calif., and around border towns in New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.

It also empowers the government's homeland security secretary to "take all actions ... necessary" to stop "all unlawful entries into the United States."

The legislation's opponents dismissed it as a costly political gimmick that will have little effect on stopping illegal immigration. They also chided Congress for failing to address the status of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants already in the U.S. or create a guest-worker program.

The fence is "a feel-good plan that will have little effect in the real world," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass.

Even before the bill passed, it prompted an angry condemnation from the Mexican government.

"We have indicated in a clear and unambiguous manner that the wall is unnecessary and that it is not a gesture that shows friendship between the countries of Latin America, the Caribbean and the United States," said Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Ernesto Derbez.

He said Mexico would send a note of diplomatic protest about the fence to the White House.

The debate on immigration dominated much of this year's congressional session, especially after Bush in a nationally televised speech in May called for a sweeping rewrite of current policy. He called for legislation that, in addition to increased border security, would create a path to U.S. citizenship for many illegal immigrants and a guest-worker program as part of a broad effort to control entry into the U.S..

The Senate later that month passed a bill embracing this approach, but efforts to reach agreement with the House quickly stalemated.

Republican House leaders objected to citizenship proposals as a form of "amnesty" for illegal immigrants and insisted that any legislation passed this year should focus on enforcement at the border. With an eye on the November midterm election, they argued that their view was in line with the sentiments of most voters.

After months of back-and-forth over the issue, the fence bill is the main result of the debate, representing a partial victory for House Republicans. Some other enforcement measures sought by the House, such as making it easier to deport illegal immigrants linked to gangs, fell by the wayside.

As part of the larger push to secure the border, the House and Senate on Friday approved and sent to Bush a spending bill for the Department of Homeland Security that, among other provisions, will alter the way Americans travel to and from Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean.

The bill, which Congress made a priority to pass before recessing for the November elections, will require U.S. citizens to present a passport when returning from other countries in the Western Hemisphere, ending Americans' ability to cross these international borders with simply a driver's license or other forms of identification.

The provision, recommended by the independent commission that investigated the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, is to take effect on June 1, 2009.

The $33.7 billion spending bill also significantly boosts funding for border security and enforcement of immigration laws at work sites and elsewhere.

The bill will enable the Department of Homeland Security to hire an additional 1,500 border patrol agents and buy 6,700 more beds at detention centers for illegal immigrants. In the past, the lack of enough beds at these facilities has caused authorities to release some of the illegal immigrants they apprehended.

The bill also provides $1.2 billion to pay for border fencing, vehicle barriers and improved sensor equipment at border crossings.

The money "provides flexibility for smart deployment of physical infrastructure that needs to be built along the Southwest border," said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.

Estimates of the cost of construction of 700 miles of fencing range from $2 billion to $9 billion, so Congress will need to allocate more money for the project in future years.

Currently, about 90 miles of fencing runs right along the border with Mexico. A few miles of secondary fencing, which runs 50 to 200 yards north of the border, has been installed around San Diego and Tucson, Ariz.

The Secure Fence Act specifies that fencing extend 10 miles to the east and west of Tecate, Calif., and from 10 miles west of Calexico, Calif., to five miles east of Douglas, Ariz.

In other areas, the fencing would start five miles west of Columbus, N.M., and extend to 10 miles east of El Paso, Texas; extend from five miles northwest of Del Rio, Texas, to five miles southeast of Eagle Pass, Texas; and from 15 miles northwest of Laredo, Texas to Brownsville, Texas.

The homeland security spending bill also makes it a criminal offense to build tunnels under U.S. borders, and includes prison terms for landowners who allow the tunnels to be built on their property.

The measure was sponsored in the Senate by Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and in the House by David Dreier, R-Calif.

Although Feinstein was among those voting for the fence bill, she was highly critical that it did not include a guest-worker program, arguing that such a measure was vital to agricultural growers in California and other parts of the country.

On Friday, she joined with Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, in a failed effort to attach the program to the bill.

Labor shortages in the field are costing billions of dollars in lost produce this year.

Feinstein, noting that California produces about half of all America's fruits, vegetables and nuts, warned that harvest problems in the state would affect consumers in the other forty-nine.

"I don't know what it takes to show that there is an emergency," she said. "I think next year we should be ready, willing and able to (create a guest-worker program), but we will have lost one agricultural season. I just hope that someone will listen."

California's other senator, Democrat Barbara Boxer, also voted for the fence bill. Other prominent Democratic senators who supported it included Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois.

Overall, the bill was backed by 54 Republicans and 26 Democrats; opposing it were 17 Democrats, one Republican (Lincoln Chaffee of Rhode Island) and the Senate's lone independent (Jim Jeffords of Vermont).

Some of those voting for the bill said they believed it could serve as a prelude to the type of broader changes in immigration policy sought by Bush.

"Many people have told me they will support comprehensive immigration reform if we secure the border first," said Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan. "I hope we can use passage of this bill as a starting point toward long-term, comprehensive immigration reform."

Immigrant advocates expressed skepticism that the 700 miles of fencing would ever be completed, given how costly it may prove. They also predicted the bill would have the unintended impact of hurting the long-term prospects of the Republican Party by sparking intense opposition among Hispanics.

"I'm going to go out on a limb and say we'll never see a 700-mile wall along the southern border," said Frank Sharry, executive director of National Immigration Forum. "This is about incumbent protection, not border protection."

Cecilia Munoz, a vice president at the National Council of La Raza, characterized the fence bill as "more symbolism than substance."

She added, "It's pretty clear to me its going to have a negative impact on Republican prospects."

Times Staff Writer Hector Tobar contributed to this report from Mexico City.

Seems to me Ms.Munoz is making a veiled threat to Republicans, this goes to show if she is against them, they must be doing something right, for gods sake lets keep them instead of putting democrats in charge to pass Amnesty! Although, I will vote for the one tough on immigration not by party affiliation. I just looked at the list of the Nays seems to be all d's. where is dxd by the way, havent seen him in awhile? We need to be sure and vote any of these running for their life in the elections out!

MW wrote:

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Isn't it something that Kennedy talked the talk against the fence bill, but when it came time to walk the walk - he was nowhere to be found! I'm sure he knew it was a lost cause - and since the man has no principles - he just faded into the shadows.

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It was Friday night....Kennedy "faded" to the Local Pub..

:)

Menedez and Lautenberg voted for the fence!!

I think the state of NJ knows who to boot out for sure now!!!

I mean they voted AGAINST THE FENCE!