Bush To Use Waivers To Finish Border Fence

Administration To Sidestep 30 Laws And Regulations To Battle Illegal Immigration

(CBS/AP)  The Bush administration plans to use its authority to bypass more than 30 laws and regulations in an effort to finish building 670 miles of fence along the southwest U.S. border by the end of this year, federal officials said Tuesday.

Invoking the two legal waivers - which Congress authorized - would cut through bureaucratic red tape and sidestep environmental laws that currently stand in the way of the Homeland Security Department building 267 miles of fencing in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, according to officials familiar with the plan. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the waivers had not yet been announced.

The move would be the biggest use of legal waivers since the administration started building the fence, and it would cover a total of 470 miles along the Southwest border. Previously, the department has used its waiver authority for two portions of fence in Arizona and one portion in San Diego.

As of March 17, there were 309 miles of fencing in place, leaving 361 to be completed by the end of the year to meet the department's goal. Of those, 267 miles are being held up by federal, state and local laws and regulations, the officials said.

One waiver would address the construction of a 22-mile levee barrier in Hidalgo County, Texas. The other waiver would cover 30 miles of fencing and technology deployment on environmentally sensitive ground in San Diego, southern Arizona and the Rio Grande; and 215 miles in California, Arizona and Texas that face other legal impediments due to administrative processes. For instance, building in some areas requires assessments and studies that - if conducted - could not be completed in time to finish the fence by the end of the year.

Brownsville Mayor Pat M. Ahumada Jr. is asking city commissioners to revoke access to city land from the federal government.

"We should make the federal government earn every inch to get on our land and not compromise," Ahumada told the Brownville Herald Monday.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff had said using the waivers would be a last resort. The department has held more than 100 meetings with lawmakers, environmental groups and residents in an effort to work out obstacles and objections to fence construction. The department will conduct environmental assessments when necessary, one of the officials said. But the waivers allow the department to start building before completing the assessments.

The department was expected to announce the plans later Tuesday.

Residents and property owners along the U.S.-Mexico border have complained about the construction of fencing. In South Texas, where opposition has been widespread, land owners refused to give the government access to property along the fence route.

The government has since sued more than 50 property owners in South Texas to gain access to the land.

Environmentalists have also complained about the fence because they say it puts already endangered species such as two types of wild cats - the ocelot and the jaguarundi - in even more danger of extinction. They say the fence would prevent them from swimming across the Rio Grande to mate.

Chertoff has said the fence is good for the environment because immigrants degrade the land with trash and human waste when they sneak illegally into the country.

[frankinaz]

The border fence won''t do much to stop illegal immigration, because there are few, if any consequences for people who enter this country and stay illegally in the U. S.
There are also few consequences for businesses that
hire illegal immigrants, because far too few of these corrupt, greedy businesses are ever caught and prosecuted for their illegal actions.
When this country makes it impossible for illegal immigrants to enter, remain, live, work here, and strips them of their "Anchor Baby" citizenship by birthright in this country, then the border fence just might work to stop the illegal immigrant invasion of the U. S.

[nodemotwit]

For those who are all gung ho about building a wall, I''ll ask this.

If you were a terrorist wanting to infiltrate the country, are you going to use a route with a wall or would you cross from Canada where there are thousands of miles of open country along the border?
Posted by formrusmcsgt

====

The article says nothing about ''terror'' or ''terrorist'' or trying to keep ''terrorists'' out of the US.

The only ones here talking about ''terror'' here appear to be liberal bloggers, off-topic obfuscation, as usual.

But, since you brought it up, try Googling these:
-''Canada terror arrest''
-''Mexico terror arrest''
Very few for Canada, but lots for Mexico.

And you also notice things in the Google results for Mexico,
like:
Terror suspect freed in Mexico
www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_1725
&
A Mexico cover-up of U.S. terror threats?
www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=37981

& this nifty US Congressional tid bit:
Organized Crime and Terrorist Activity in Mexico, 1999-2002
www.loc.gov/rr/frd/pdf-files/OrgCrime_Mexico.pdf
w/a section on FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS Islamic Terrorist Organizations

(cont)

[nodemotwit]

(cont)

...And then you recall the (unfortunate) tradition of Mexican political corruption, and
that Canada does not have a thriving ''coyote'' trade (unlike in Mexico) to get the terrorists-posing-as-illegal-aliens across the border in closed vehicles, completely out of sight.

If I were a terrorist, Mexico sounds, and apparently is, pretty inviting%u2026

Unless you put up Israeli-style wall on our southern border,
then Canada... except for the far less corrupt Canadian government%u2026 and the much more technically-competent, robust Canadian police... and the zilch ''coyote'' infrastructure...

[timaran]

A locked door does not guarantee that your house will not be robbed but it is still much better then leaving your door wide open.

Posted by NAVYVET77 at 10:13 AM : Apr 02, 2008

No one is suggesting leaving the door open. But there are better ways to close it than to spend gazillions of taxpayer dollars for this silliness.

[idnamehere]

Just a question, but are the Hispanics planning another rally/protest in May?

[missingamerica]

..are just more stupid than a coal bucket.

Posted by dogband at 11:53 AM : Apr 02, 2008

...or we come from a technologically advanced society that not only understands the theory of but possesses advanced devices which we like to call "motion detectors", "infrared sensors", and "cameras"....

[dogband]

Uh ... maybe its just me .... but could a terrorist not just get in a device made to float on water ....

... whats that called ?? Oh, a B O A T!! and just waltz into our country on that big east or west coast?

Maybe the terrorist could build one of those devices to climb ....

..whats it called ....um? a LADDER.

You people praising Bush for doing this great deed, to paraphrase George Clooney in O Brother Where Art Thou ...

..are just more stupid than a coal bucket.

[dogband]

A fence ......... goodness .... we are rapidly becoming the laughing stock of the entire WORLD.

A FENCE? Are we serious???

Apparently so.

[navyvet77]

The Great Wall of China did not keep "illegals" out. Hadrian''''s Wall did not keep "illegals" out.

Posted by Timaran at 08:00 AM : Apr 02, 2008

-----------------------------------------------------

A locked door does not guarantee that your house will not be robbed but it is still much better then leaving your door wide open.

[newmar3]

I wonder how Bush is going to feel,for being remembered as a worse President than Richard Nixon?

[timaran]

"Build the fence. Protect your home and your country.

Build the fence. This is not about politics. It''''s about people breaking the law, entering this nation illegally."

Yes, it is about politics. The Great Wall of China did not keep "illegals" out. Hadrian''s Wall did not keep "illegals" out. The Berlin Wall did not keep eastern Germans in. Where there is a fence, there is a ladder one foot taller. This border fence will NOT keep illegal aliens out. Better funding for staffing of border patrol and better surveillence equipment would go a lot further. But, we can''t afford that anymore, can we?

This is only a political ploy to try to convince the gullible that this administration is "doing something" about the border after nearly eight years of doing nothing about it. Oh, and let''s break umpteen laws and take people''s land away from them while they do it. All in a days work for this sorry regime.

[leftyintexas]

Doofus hasn''t done anything right his entire life. It just goes to show you ANYONE can become President in this country, even a moron with enough money. How unfortunate for this country! The fence is a total waste of money just like his Iraq War. Money and lives lost for NOTHING!

[formrusmcsgt]

For those who are all gung ho about building a wall, I''ll ask this.

If you were a terrorist wanting to infiltrate the country, are you going to use a route with a wall or would you cross from Canada where there are thousands of miles of open country along the border?

It sounds great on paper, but closing one border while the other remains wide open is absurd.

[ryindy]

Had the fence been started in 1964 after the first amnesty, it would have long been finished and the illegal alien crisis as it is known today would not even exist.

[lucasnico]

Yep, Big Pharm Sue is right again!! Just bypass those 30 laws....it''s what we''ve come to expect and get from this administration.

[kansas1946]

Although I despise Bush, I am glad to see him finally use executive power to get something useful done instead of using executive priviledge to try and bash the constitution. It has taken almost eight years for him to do something useful.

[cfin5]

Hey, while the President has his Waiver Booklet out, how about giving some waivers to whoever builds those Oil Refineries that haven''t been built since I was a kid. Everybody gripes about the price of oil (including me) yet won''t allow the means to keep the prices down. Sign the waivers for wherever theres oil to be drilled for. Those Caribou and Moose are getting awfully expensive to worry about over nothing. Folks act like they''re gonna poke a hole every 300yrd. apart for half the size of Alaska. No, they drill one main hole and use directional drilling tech to branch off near the bottom. Get a side picture in your head of a tree upside down with the bottom of the trunk at ground level. Think of the amount of work that that would provide a breadwinner for his/her family.......Now, for the other side of the story. Any oil company that does not implement any fuel saving tech patent that they hold within a year should be made to cede the rights to the tech to whoever wants to put it to work.......Whatever it takes! Somebody get off their lazy public servant canassticator and do your job!

[p-syrus]

NONSENSE!

This isn''t about "illegal immigration". This is about corporate welfare. Fencing the border along the u.s. southwest is an ineffective technique for controlling traffic flow. It is an excellent excuse, however, for large & useless contracts to well-connected corporate suppliers.

The terrain is simply too rough and the climate too harsh. Maintenance on the fence will be a cost-prohibitive nightmare. Nor will a fence be effective in keeping regular traffickers from crossing the border.

Just another boondoggle for Bush''s corporate cronies.

[joyous88]

the life of the entire republicon corruption

has been a waiver, a waiver of greed versus humanity,

and in the republicon/cpnservative lexigon greed wins,

these republicons are nothing but anti american criminals

read the bill of rights and the constitution, and than

if you are an honest man, yopu will see the repuiblicons for what they are

greed driven anti american criminals

[nodemotwit]

Seems to me like some mayors are being idiot obstructionists - either out of spite, or because they or their constituents want the illegal vote.
Posted by SusanHelit

I 100pct agree. And while illegal aliens are a problem, drug runners and the crime they bring to both sides of the border are as big if not bigger problem. I suspect that once a fence of substance is in place that the resulting inflow of border crime into the remaining self-centered, obstructionistic hold-out towns will quickly bring them to their senses.

But personally I would prefer a more substantial Israeli-style wall on our southern border. We can drop 3 Tril $ on Iraq BUT can''t spend a few hundred Bil $ to build an true security wall on our southern border, nor properly staff and arm our Border Patrol ?? Forcing drug runners to ship their illegal contraband (drugs, guns, etc) by sea or by air will be easier to track and apprehend. And, as a side effect, it will also become too expensive for the illegals that are the grist of the coyote trade. Harshly prosecute the remaining US business that employ illegals. Then give a selected number on non-Americans [who want to work in the US, but do not want and have no intention of ever becoming Americans, some of whom will even call ''gringos'' prejudiced (but, strangely, Viva La Raza! is OK...)] work permits and let them enter the US legally, and work legally, then let them go home.