Environmental Bills Called Pretext to Loosen Border Security
Monday, July 14, 2008
By Kevin Mooney, Staff Writer

(CNSNews.com) – Open-border advocates operating under the guise of environmentalism are prepared to push for legislation that could result in an accelerated flow of illegal immigration, drug smuggling, and human trafficking from Mexico into Arizona, according to law enforcement experts familiar with the terrain.

The two bills, sponsored by Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), would restrict federal and state law enforcement officials from patrolling an already porous border area that extends from Sonora, Mexico into Santa Cruz County, Ariz., critics charge.

However, some members of Congress and environmental activists maintain the legislation would provide for greater flexibility in enforcing the border while safeguarding natural treasures.

Grijalva has proposed extending federal wilderness protection to approximately 84,000 acres of the Tumacacori Highlands within the Coronado National Forest, which is located adjacent to the Pajarita Wilderness that runs along the Mexican border.

This wilderness designation would effectively push the Mexican border 30 miles to the north of its present location, according to Zack Taylor, a retired U.S. Border Patrol officer.

To be effective, he said, U.S. border security personnel must have the latitude and the ability to move laterally along U.S. and Mexican territory in response to traffic, just as the defensive squad of a football must mirror the movements of an opposing offense.

Grijalva’s bills would essentially create “safe havensâ€