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Exclusive: “Can Do” Nation Does Nothing
Michael Cutler
Author: Michael Cutler
Source: The Family Security Foundation, Inc
Date: January 19, 2007



When will America’s leaders stop making excuses and find a successful border security policy? FSM Contributing Editor Michael Cutler wants to know.



“Can Do” Nation Does Nothing



By Michael Cutler



America used to be known as the "Can Do" nation. The world perception of the United States is that when we rolled up our sleeves and set out on a mission, the mission would be accomplished quickly, decisively and effectively. That was then, this is now.



Now, we are a nation adrift in a dangerous sea as storm clouds gather overhead, surrounded by icebergs, sharks and all sorts of hazards that challenge our survival. It would appear that there is no one in the wheel house willing to take charge and plot a course of action that will guide us into calmer and safer waters. The fact is our borders are so porous as to be little more than a speed bump to those who are determined to enter our country illegally. Politicians have learned to game the system, as have the terrorists and criminals. The politicians have substituted sound bites for leadership. They pander to everyone and, in the end, satisfy the needs of those who make the biggest campaign contributions or promise to crank out more votes for them.



Political careers are more important than the safety of our nation and its citizens. Neither political party is willing to secure the borders or restore integrity to the immigration system even though it is clear that open borders enable drugs, criminals and terrorists to easily enter our country. Politicians yell about the need to screen cargo containers and demand that police and fire departments have radios so they can communicate with one another. They seek to get money from the Department of Homeland Security to secure their communities should a disaster strike, but they are not prepared to consider the immigration system as an integral component of national security. They claim to be intent upon following the recommendations and findings of the 9/11 Commission, but apparently ignore those very same recommendations and findings when it involves our nation's borders and the immigration bureaucracy.



During the time that the "Fence Bill" was being debated in Washington and in the days after it was approved by both Houses of Congress, I was called to do what seemed to be a nearly infinite number of interviews with newspapers and radio and television news programs. I guess my cynicism was showing when I opined that the fence would most likely not be built. I further explained that the fence, by itself, would not protect our nation, but if properly constructed it could offer a valuable measure of security if it is seen as a component of border security and not the solution to border security. However, the President has resisted every effort to secure the borders and even wants to expand the extremely dangerous Visa Waiver Program.



While a relative handful of courageous political leaders have championed secure borders and an immigration system that possesses meaningful integrity, most politicians and their parties insist upon maintaining the status quo, enabling millions of illegal aliens to rush across our borders and through our ports of entry, securing illegal employment in the most innocuous situations. Some are even hoping to commit crimes and even acts of terror within our borders.



Report after report has made it clear that the immigration system is really not a system at all, only a loose conglomeration of failed programs that purport to screen aliens seeking entry into our country, seek to locate apprehend and remove criminal aliens and members of gangs and drug trafficking organizations and locate and apprehend terrorists. These reports also indicate that criminals and terrorists have been granted amnesty, resident alien status and even United States citizenship. The 9/11 Commission made it clear that these failings contributed to the ability of the terrorists to attack our nation on September 11, 2001 and may well facilitate future terrorist attacks.



Before the attacks of September 11, 2001, I spoke with a number of my friends on Capitol Hill. I shared my concerns with them that the porous borders, coupled with a dysfunctional immigration bureaucracy, especially where the adjudication of immigration benefits were concerned, would enable criminals and terrorists to enter our country and attack us and our citizens. Many called me "Chicken Little" and told me I was an alarmist. In the days after 9/11, I received a call from one of those friends. He told me he regretted have been so derisive about my concerns. I told him I like things better when I was Chicken Little. I did not want to be right, especially about terrorists.



I am, once again, frustrated at having been right. I predicted that the fence would not be built and it would appear that it will, indeed, never be constructed and our borders will remain unsecured. I do not often agree with Michael Chertoff, the Secretary of Homeland Security, but I have to agree with him that "boots on the ground" is what is truly needed in order to accomplish the many missions relating to border security and the enforcement of the immigration laws. Paradoxically the President apparently does not see things that way. I cannot recall when Mr. Bush ever offered to hire as many new Border Patrol agents as Congress authorized, nor can I recall when he agreed to hire as many new special agents for ICE as Congress authorized.



The debate is beginning all over again and each day they fail to take decisive action, more criminals, drugs and terrorists enter our country. Each day many more illegal aliens who make a mockery of our supposedly sovereign borders and immigration laws enter our nation with impunity, swelling their numbers in our country and making it increasingly difficult to deal with the crisis. My mom used to tell me that "Talk is cheap" and that "Actions speak louder than words." Members of Congress would do well to take those messages to heart.



More than five years after the worst terrorist attacks ever committed on our land, little more than talk has been accomplished. Our government has squandered billions of dollars, sent the young men and woman of our military services into harms way and so many have returned badly wounded, or worse. We have witnessed an erosion of our rights and freedoms. Our expectations of privacy have been diminished. All of these have happened in the name of national security and the "War on Terror." Yet apparently, the United States of America cannot and will not secure its own borders, even as our soldiers and members of our Border Patrol strive to secure the borders of Iraq.



I often like to quote my parents who both passed away while I was in college, having lost their battles with cancer. Today I will tell you what I have repeatedly told my children. I have taught them that the opposite of success is an excuse. When we are successful the conversation is usually short and to the point. We will make note of a success and move on to other issues. When we fail to accomplish our goals, however, we resort to offering excuses. The child who claims he could not bring his assignment to class because his dog ate his homework, quickly finds out you can only use That excuse a couple of times before you lose all credibility. When our leaders stand before the microphones and cameras and start spewing excuses you know you are listening to the sound of failure. Where the "War on Terror" is concerned, as Gene Kranz, the flight director for many of the early manned space missions, implored his people to successfully bring the Apollo 13 astronauts home alive, "Failure is not an option!"



Lead, follow or get out of the way!



FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributing Editor Michael Cutler is a Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies and a well-respected authority on immigration and border security issues.



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