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U.S. to Be Part of North American Union?

James H. Walsh
Monday, Oct. 9, 2006


After all was said and done, the U.S. Congress finally managed to pass immigration legislation in the year 2006.

On Sept. 14, the U.S. House of Representatives passed The Secure Fence Act of 2006 (H.R. 6061); and the U.S. Senate, late on Sept. 29, voted for a bill (S. 80-19), endorsing the House version. Sen. Teddy Kennedy, D-Mass., spokesman for the anti-fence forces, was conspicuous by his absence at the vote.

The House and Senate bills authorize the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to construct a fence along sections of the U.S.-Mexican border.

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Of course, this being an election year, congressional Democrats did all they could to stall and stop any substantial immigration reform and supported qualifications of the Fence Act that may weaken it as a border-control tool. Democrats didn't have the votes to stop the Fence Act or to pass a "comprehensive" immigration bill.

Indebted as they are to immigration special interests, the Democrats suffered a severe loss.

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The critics of tighter border control are many: Catholic and Lutheran charities, labor unions, Soros-funded "open society" groups, such Mexican radicals as La Raza, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA), and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF).

A New Union

Whether knowingly or not, those favoring less stringent border controls are lending aid and support to an initiative favored by President Bush.

It is a movement toward a North American Union, based on the model of the European Union. On March 23, 2005, President Bush, Mexican President Vincente Fox, and then Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin signed an agreement entitled, "The Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America" (SPP).

The partnership would establish a "common security perimeter" against terrorism; it would integrate economic benefits for the three nations, assuring free trade and travel across the borders. SPP supporters are working toward enactment of a North American Union by 2010.

Those U.S. citizens currently demanding border control should well take note. "Flexibility" provisions in the Fence Act and "modernization" of the U.S.-Mexican border might actually help open the border in the cause of a common security perimeter.

President Bush, who promised to sign the Fence Act, has yet to do so, as of this writing. The president, in Arizona on Oct. 4, did sign the 2006 DHS Appropriations Bill and, more importantly, the funding legislation for the fence that he has yet to authorize.

Will It Work?

The 2006 immigration legislation, while good politics for the Republicans, actually may have little consequence in stopping the flow of illegal aliens into the United States.

To secure passage of the Fence Act, congressional Republicans granted Indian tribes, governors, and local leaders a say in placement of the fencing; and the DHS was authorized to use "flexibility" in choosing alternative sites. The provisions of the bill give priority to "modernization of the border."

DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff estimates that it will take until the end of 2008 to gain operational control of the Southwest border. The truth of the proverb — when one door closes, another opens –– is, however, painfully evident along this border.

U.S. Border Patrol agents and local residents point out that much of the terrain designated for fencing is marked by bluffs, ravines, and creek beds subject to flash floods that will surely sweep fencing away.

Doris Meissner, former Immigration & Naturalization Service commissioner, opined that, while the immediate fenced area may curtail crossings, it won't stop illegal immigration.

The money made from smuggling illegal aliens and illegal narcotics is too enticing to be so easily curtailed. During the two years needed to complete construction of the fence, several million additional aliens will enter the United States illegally and will further impact U.S. social services and natural resources.

The 2006 Fence Act is a worthy, if empty, gesture toward regaining U.S. national sovereignty after four decades of frontal assault and degradation by the radical liberal left.

Properly enforced, the bill could be a step forward for the United States in the journey toward protecting the republic, but don't count on it.

At the DHS Appropriations Act signing, President Bush repeated his support of a "comprehensive" immigration bill to legalize most illegal aliens presently in the United States and to provide a temporary worker program.

The president may have envisioned comprehensive immigration legislation as a facet of his larger vision of a North American Union (NAU) melding Mexico, Canada, and the United States into a conglomerate similar to the struggling European Union (EU).

House Republicans and those who want to maintain the national sovereignty of the United States had different ideas.

Republican House leaders, especially Peter King, R-N.Y., and James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., deserve much of the credit for passage of the Fence Act, even though it may turn out to be a pyrrhic victory.

President Bush and his supporters, at home and abroad, have not given up on a comprehensive immigration bill. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, chairman of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, indicated that the debate on comprehensive immigration legislation might yet be resumed in a brief post-election session of Congress. Rep. King, however, sees little inclination in the House to take up further immigration legislation, until the border is under control.

Stem the Tide

The 2006 immigration legislation is an effort by Congress to stop the tsunami-like flow of illegal aliens across the U.S.-Mexican border.

The Secure Fence Act provides for a 700-mile fence at various designated border areas in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Act also provides for vehicular barriers, motion detectors, cameras, lighting, unmanned aerial devices, and other high-tech surveillance equipment.

It calls for an additional 1,500 U.S. Border Patrol agents and expanded detention space for apprehended illegal aliens. The DHS Appropriations Act includes Fence Act funding for fiscal year 2007 (Oct. 2006–Sept. 2007) of $1.2 billion.

Congress requires the DHS secretary to submit by early December 2006 how the monies will be spent. The total cost of the Fence Act is estimated at $2 billion to $9 billion, the latter, of course, espoused by critics of the fence.

In 2006, it was not possible for Congress to correct past immigration legislation mistakes, especially those of 1965 and 1986. The 1965 bill opened the doors for third-world immigration while restricting western European immigration.

The 1986 bill granted amnesty to illegal aliens while promising to control the border through employer sanctions. The amnesty was granted, but the sanctions weren't enforced; and the floodgates of illegal immigration were opened.

James Walsh is a former federal prosecutor and former associate general counsel of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, U.S. Department of Justice.