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King shows fence model at House hearing
JANE NORMAN
REGISTER WASHINGTON BUREAU


July 20, 2006


Washington, D.C. — Rep. Steve King brought his model of an electrified, wire-topped border fence to a House immigration hearing here today that probed how and where to erect a lengthy new U.S.-Mexico barrier.

King, a Kiron Republican, displayed a small model of a fence he designed that actually would be more like a wall, made of six-inch-thick concrete panels dropped in with a crane and anchored five feet deep in the ground.

A ribbon of wire topped the wall. “It would stand there for perhaps a hundred years, if necessary,” said King, who ran his own earth-moving company before coming to Congress.

“I spent my life in the construction business,” he said, where he was expected to produce “100 percent efficiency.” King said his western Iowa constituents expect the same and “want to stop all illegal immigration.”

He estimated his fence would cost about $1.3 million per mile and would be more effective than other solutions in intercepting illegal immigrants and an estimated $65 billion annually in illegal drugs.

The House and Senate each have approved bills calling for hundreds of miles of new fencing.

King has emerged as one of the most vocal members of the House calling for heightened security on the border, as well as opposition to any legislative approach that would grant eventual citizenship to illegal immigrants.

He gained attention when he brought his model of an electrified fence to the House floor last week. “We could also electrify this wire with the kind of current that would not kill somebody, but it would be a discouragement for them to be fooling around with it. We do that with livestock all the time,” he said then.

The joint hearing on fencing was held by the Government Reform and Homeland Security committees and included other members of Congress, construction contractors and Border Patrol officials.
It is one in a series of immigration hearings that House Republican leaders called this summer.

Both the House and Senate have approved vastly different immigration bills, and Democrats have charged that the hearings are a way to postpone negotiations that might result in a bill closer to a Senate approach that provides a path to citizenship. Republicans say they are seeking more information.

A fence is a given, they said. “Though the question of whether we should have more border fencing has occasionally generated more heat than light, the fact is that this proposition is more or less settled in Congress,” said Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., the chairman of the hearing.

But Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Tex., said fencing “is not a good investment of taxpayer dollars” and more agents could be hired with the same money.

The U.S. Border Patrol currently maintains about 75 miles of fence along the southwest border, mostly in urban areas. Kevin Stevens, senior associate chief for the Border Patrol, said it is “very successful for us” there combined with high-intensity lighting and cameras.

Other fencing used in the past has been cut down or moved by immigrants, such as chain-link fences or barbed wire, said Stevens. Even heavy, solid fence material in an area that is not highly patrolled can be cut through or climbed over, he said. Placing more obstructions on top has helped.

“A fence does in fact deter some and it delays those who won’t be deterred,” said Stevens.

However, he said under questioning that what is needed is an “appropriate mix” of enforcement, including fences, agents, off-road vehicles, aircraft and other deterrents.

The House bill mandates the construction of 854 miles of double-layer fencing, including lights and cameras in California, New Mexico and Texas. The Senate voted for 370 miles of triple-layer fencing and 500 miles of vehicle barriers.

Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., said Congress already approved additional detention beds and border agents in 2004 but failed to provide money for them. “So here we are talking about a fence, a one-size-fits-all solution,” she said.

Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Calif., said that “I do not believe it is in any way a silver bullet,” but both the House and Senate included provisions for fences in their bills. “This is a position the American people have come to support,” said Lungren.

King said he has visited the border four times during the past year. “Sometimes I go down alone and show up to see what I can learn,” he said, staying up until the middle of the night talking with agents and listening to activity.