US

US Border Security: Huge Costs With Mixed Results

US Border Security: Huge Costs With Mixed Results

In this April 19, 2011 picture, a member of the National Guard checks on his colleague inside a Border Patrol Skybox near the Hidalgo International Bridge in Hidalgo, Texas. National Guard members along the Texas-Mexico border assist Border Patrol by surveying the terrain from the tower. (AP Photo/Delcia Lopez)

HIDALGO, Texas (AP) — Perched 20 feet above a South Texas cabbage field in a telephone booth-sized capsule, a National Guardsman passes a moonlit Sunday night with a gun strapped to his hip, peering through heat detector lenses into an adjacent orange grove.

Deployment of 1,200 National Guard soldiers for one year: $110 million.

This same night, farther west on the border, a haunting whistle blasts through the predawn quiet as a mile-long train groans to a heavy stop halfway across a Rio Grande River bridge. In a ritual performed nightly, a Customs and Border Protection agent unlocks a gate, a railroad policeman slides the heavy doors open, and they both wave flashlight beams under, over and in between the loads of cars, electronics and produce, before they pass through an X-ray machine searching for hidden people or drugs.

One rail cargo x-ray screening machine: $1.75 million.

On this night in southern Arizona, a screener examining tractor-trailer loads of charcoal spots something odd and asks for a closer look. Drug sniffing dogs bark. He finds 8,000 pounds of baled marijuana in several trucks.

Customs and Border Protection officer average annual salary: $75,000. Drug-sniffing dog: $4,500.

As Congress debates border funding and as governors demand more assistance, The Associated Press has investigated what taxpayers spend securing the U.S.-Mexico border.

US Border Security: Huge Costs With Mixed Results

In this April 19, 2011 photo, Texas National Guardsman Cpl. Martinez looks through a pair of binoculars near the Hidalgo International Bridge in Hidalgo, Texas. National Guard troops have augmented the Border Patrol's 21,000 agents by almost 6 percent since July, 2010. The troops serve as lookouts but are not directly involved in actual law enforcement activities. They are credited with helping arrest 17,000 illegal immigrants, almost 6 percent of those caught, according to Customs and Border Protection.(AP Photo/Delcia Lopez)

The price tag, until now, has not been public. But AP, using White House budgets, reports obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests and congressional transcripts, tallied it all up: $90 billion in 10 years.

For taxpayers footing this bill, the returns have been mixed: fewer illegal immigrants but little impact on the terrorism issue, and certainly no stoppage of the drug supply.

___

The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists didn’t come from Mexico, but the attacks led politicians to re-examine border security. Ten days later, President George W. Bush announced a new Department of Homeland Security, with tasks including the security of the nation’s porous southern border.

Over the next 10 years, annual border spending tripled as the U.S. built an unprecedented network along the 1,900-mile border with Mexico: 165 truck and train X-ray machines; 650 miles of heavy duty fencing and sheer concrete walls; twice as many law enforcement officers along the entire stretch, and a small fleet of Predator drones. Also, remote surveillance cameras, thermal imaging devices and partially buried ground sensors that sound an alarm back at headquarters if someone steps on one in the desert.

“Our obligation to secure our borders involves a responsibility to do so in the most cost effective way possible, and we recognize that there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution to meet our border security needs,” said Department of Homeland Security spokesman Matthew Chandler.

Over the years, the goals of the border security measures have shifted.

Early concerns that terrorists could sneak weapons into the U.S. from Mexico were later overshadowed by worries about violent drug cartels slaughtering people across the Rio Grande. As the U.S. economy faltered, preventing illegal immigrants from sneaking north for jobs became the focus.

“Border security is no longer just about responding to 9/11. It became very much a part of the immigration debate,” said Jena Baker McNeill, homeland security policy analyst at The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C.

Indeed, stopping immigrants at the border has become a bargaining tool for the last two administrations with Congress — fences and guards in exchange for reforming immigration laws, she said.

The buildup has dramatically reduced illegal immigration. Ten years ago, border agents caught 1.6 million illegal immigrants in one year. Last year they caught just 463,000. The drop is attributed in part to the U.S. recession which decreased jobs here, but it’s also an indication, according to federal officials, that fewer people are attempting to illegally cross the border.

But the spending has not worked to stop the flow of illegal drugs. Last year, border guards seized a record 254,000 pounds of cocaine, 3.6 million pounds of marijuana, and 4,200 pounds of heroin. In response, Mexico’s cartel bosses simply sent more: trainloads of marijuana, cocaine stuffed in fenders and dashboards, heroin packed into young men’s shoes.

An estimated 660,000 pounds of cocaine, 44,000 pounds of heroin and 220,000 pounds of methamphetamine are on American streets in a given year, according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy. A fraction of that amount is seized at the border, a small operating cost for Mexico’s drug lords, who will reap an estimated $25 billion this year from their U.S. sales.

Last month, a Justice Department study reviewing the total cost of illicit drug use in the U.S., using cost-of-illness studies, federal crime and caseload statistics, and economic models, came up with a figure of $193 billion per year.

“You can’t ever seal the border. You can never stop anything 100 percent. As long as there’s a market, as long as there’s a profit, there will always be someone taking a chance on getting that product through,” says Democratic U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes of Texas, a former Border Patrol director.

Despite the surge of violence just a stone’s throw away — the death toll in Mexico’s crackdown on cartels is more than 35,000 — the Obama administration reports communities on the U.S. side of the border enjoy relative peace. Nor have terrorists typically crossed the border to enter the U.S., officials note.

Still, Rep. Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, warns against complacency.

“There is a disagreement about the definition of spillover violence and the extent of such violence, but there should be no disagreement about the threat we face and what will happen if this Administration continues to downplay the threat,” he said. “So what should we do? For starters we should get out of our foxholes and lean forward against this growing threat. If we don’t, the cartels will eventually attempt to take over our cities.”

If Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano could talk to Mexico’s drug cartel bosses, here’s what she says she would tell them: “Don’t even think about bringing your violence and tactics across this border. You will be met by an overwhelming response.”

And if she could talk to would-be illegal immigrants, she’d say this: “There are more Border Patrol agents on that border than ever before. There are more customs officials. There is more technology. Do not throw in your lot with the cartels or the criminal organizations because the likelihood of getting caught, and the consequences of doing so are higher than ever before.”

For 2012, the Obama administration’s record high budget for border security proposes an additional $242 million to pay for high tech watch towers and movable screeners along the border, $229 million to raise border agents’ pay, and $184 million to identify and deport criminal aliens in state prisons and local jails. That’s on top of about $14 billion to support the ongoing infrastructure.

Over the years, budget allocations tell a story of a shifting border policy.

In 2002, as post-9/11 security checks created four-hour waits on the border, the Bush Administration sought $380 million to construct a state-of-the-art entry and exit visa system.

In 2006, the federal government ended an immigration “catch and release” policy in which local police had been releasing illegal immigrants if they hadn’t committed a local crime. Now they would be turned over to feds and face immigration charges. That year taxpayers spent $327 million for 4,000 new beds to hold the suspected illegal immigrants until they could be legally processed.

This January, the Obama administration dumped SBInet, an attempt to install a high-tech “virtual” border fence project that cost taxpayers nearly $1 billion but did little to improve security.

“From the start, SBInet’s one-size-fits-all approach was unrealistic,” said Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, the chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “The department’s decision to use technology based on the particular security needs of each segment of the border is a far wiser approach, and I hope it will be more cost effective.”

___

Are border priorities now matched by spending? The answer depends on whom you ask.

“At some point we got the misconception that border security means securing the border,” said Andrew Selee, director of the Washington-based Mexico Institute at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a nonpartisan think tank. “It’s actually about something much more comprehensive, from reducing drug use to reforming immigration laws, all the while facilitating legitimate trade. The spending needs to match the goals.”

Customs and Border Patrol’s main job is to protect the U.S. from terrorism. But it’s the U.S-Canada frontier — which taxpayers spent $2.9 billion securing last year — that is “the more significant threat” when it comes to terrorism, CBP head Alan Bersin told senators at a recent hearing.

Bersin said this is because the Canadian government won‘t use the FBI’s no-fly terrorist watchlist. (Canada has its own.) “We are, more than we would like, confronted with the fact where a No-Fly has entered Canada and then is arrested coming across one of our bridges into the United States,” Bersin said.

Just over 6,000 people were arrested — for all reasons, not just for being on the no-fly lists — at the U.S.-Canada border last year, compared to 445,000 arrests at the Mexican border.

In Texas, El Paso County Judge Veronica Escobar calls the $2.6 billion, 650-mile border fence that winds through the south side of her city, “a rusting monument that makes my community look like a junk-yard.” Even worse, the rows of 18-foot welded steel bars along the Rio Grande River don‘t do anything to address El Paso’s costs from Mexico’s drug wars, she says.

“Border residents have seen their communities used as a convenient backdrop to heated debates and political posturing about immigration and drug policies,” she says.

For example, since 2008, when violence exploded across the border in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, hundreds of near-dead victims have been rushed across the border to public emergency rooms where taxpayers have spent $4.9 million in trauma care for those victims to date. And local sheriffs are overwhelmed with policing transnational gangs. Jails, she said, are overcrowded. Prosecutors juggle cases that should be handled by feds.

“Where has some of the federal funding gone, if not to my trauma facility or increasing my law enforcement capacity?” Escobar asks, then answers her own question. “It’s gone to a wall.”

Nelson H. Balido, president of the Border Trade Alliance, questions whether federal border funding has shortchanged security at ports of entry, in favor of security between them.

“If there aren’t enough inspectors to open up all the lanes at a land border port during a period of peak traffic, then shipments can get stuck waiting in sometimes miles-long backups, stalling just-in-time manufacturing operations and increasing costs,” he said.

Nor does random vehicle inspection make sense, he said, comparing it to “a search for a needle in a haystack, often resulting in increased delays and congestion to residents and the trade.”

Gil Kerlikowske, the outgoing director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, said he doesn’t think the country can completely stop drugs from crossing its borders and advocates a holistic approach that includes border security as well as prevention and treatment programs to lessen drug demand.

“I don‘t think we have a real choice but to make sure that we’re putting the appropriate amount of money and technology into the border,” Kerlikowske said. “But I also think when it comes to the drug issue that we need to be really focused on not just thinking about it from an enforcement end only.”

Comments (137)

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  • Drakkhanlord
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:42am

    Shut The Border Down…Use deadly Force to Enforce it .
    Deport all illegals . Take all From them ,

    This is about Survival People …Our Nation or Theirs ..
    .If illegals wanted to be Citizens they have had many dam years to do it.
    Start Shooting these sobs and the problems will run away fast

    Report Post » Drakkhanlord  
  • regressive_democrat
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:41am

    End the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Education, the EPA, the FDA, and cut the department of State by three quarters and we can fund a nice impenetrable wall on the southern border with cash to spare.

    Report Post »  
  • Goldoxide
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:32am

    Yes there is a “one size fits all solution” Cycling troups comming home from Afghanistan to a gig augmenting the Border Patrol. Have all troops put in their six months at the border. ARMED.

    Report Post »  
  • kramh
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:21am

    If we remove all government benifits for noncitizens,most of the problem would go away. Do not let employers deduct wages of illegals. And start a green card program for temp.farm workers without bringing families here. If we went south of the border we would have to pay for private school for our children. Many people tend to move to where they get free stuff.

    Report Post »  
    • jb.kibs
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:15pm

      yep.. they don’t come for freedom, they come for free stuff.

      Report Post »  
  • Jenny Lind
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:04am

    Nothing short of all out miltary stomping is going to fix this, and I think the American people are getting tired of waiting for it to happen.

    Report Post »  
  • NOBALONEY
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:55am

    Priorities. What’s in the national interest? A secured border, or the wars in Libya,Afghanistan,Pakistan, and Yemen.

    Report Post » NOBALONEY  
  • lvjohn
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:53am

    The cheapest solution to 100% border control is land mines!

    Report Post »  
  • boca_chica
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:38am

    Another government agency in a growth spurt-Empire building at its best.

    Report Post »  
  • neverending
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:35am

    Of course it is mixed results because to them it is just a game – they are not serious about it and more and more innocent lives of citizens, border patrol and law enforcement are lost. Just another disgrace from this administration.

    Report Post »  
  • Theleftisda
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:22am

    Ten years ago, border agents caught 1.6 million illegal immigrants in one year. Last year they caught just 463,000. The drop is attributed in part to the U.S. recession which decreased jobs here.
    no they just stopped arresting them and tell them to return to Mexico,it’s another scam by our communist leadership.

    Report Post » Theleftisda  
  • mikester8888
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:19am

    Janet and Barry says its safer today than when that ole George Bush was in office. I believe them. So i will send a shout-out to both of them to come on down and visit one of our parks on the border. BOTH OF YOU,bring your wives and kids and see if you could include every politician in DC to come to. And those ole warning signs, just pick them up as you pass them, you wouldnt want to leave a trail.

    Report Post »  
  • leftcoastslut
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:57am

    catch and release??? sounds like a fishing competition

    Report Post »  
  • Steve
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:55am

    We wouldn’t have this problem if we voted in a representative of the tea party.

    Report Post »  
  • Seede
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:48am

    Add your comments

    Report Post »  
  • Seede
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:46am

    Crack down on the people that hire these illegals. Shut their businesses down forever. They will soon learn. Fine them out of existence and they will think twice before they do it again. That would fix a good share of the problem. If they are criminals put them out in the desert where they can’t walk out. In a heartbeat they will learn and stay home. When you catch an illegal tag him with a chip and get him out of here. These DC idiots want you to believe that it all lays at the border but that’s only the tip of the ice burg. Big Sis wants you to believe that it’s impossible to control so just let it go on and on and on. They want their cheap labor and drugs to continue. That’s the bottom line.

    Report Post »  
    • ropati
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:55pm

      Here’s a WIN-WIN-WIN proposition. [1] Fine every US employer 10,000 dollars per illegal found in his employ. [2] Use the money to pay down the national debt. [3] Give the now-empty jobs to those Americans who are currently unemployed. WIN #1. The illegals self-deport because they cannot find work here. WIN #2. The national debt gets lowered. WIN #3. The unemployment rate drops. Of course, this will never happen as long as there is a democrat in the White House, because less illegals means less democrat votes in the following election. I would, however, campaign very hard for any politician proposing this solution.

      Report Post »  
  • 912828Buckeye
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:45am

    I don‘t know what the anwser is but what we are doing isn’t working.

    Report Post » 912828Buckeye  
  • swampbuck
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:40am

    would cost a lot less if we would put the national guard down on the border..

    Report Post » swampbuck  
  • highcarry
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:39am

    a half mile barrier of multi flora rose would do an excellent job and cost a fraction. and if they did get through, we could recognize them from the blood gushing lacerations.

    Report Post » highcarry  
  • ZAP
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:36am

    Cheap labor and votes.COME ON IN !!!

    Report Post » ZAP  
  • TheGreyPiper
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:32am

    If Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano could talk to Mexico’s drug cartel bosses, here’s what she says she would tell them: “Don’t even think about bringing your violence and tactics across this border. You will be met by an overwhelming response.”
    ———-

    What a clueless, dimwitted, head-up-her-a$$, loser idiot! What does she think is happening in Arizona?!?!?
    Godalfkknngmighty, can’t we call for early elections like they do in Britain, vote of No-confidence and get this bunch of over-promoted trailer trash out of DC NOW????

    Report Post » TheGreyPiper  
    • RepubliCorp
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:50am

      But La Raza (Mexican Acorn) will make sure they vote Demorat

      Report Post » RepubliCorp  
  • DoloresAB
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:28am

    We protect other countries borders and yet we can not effectively protect our own, that’s not good enough! It’s time to bring our men and women home and let them protect and seal our borders, it can be done!

    Report Post » DoloresAB  
    • TomFerrari
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:45am

      we WON’T… – that’s very different than, “we can’t”

      Report Post » TomFerrari  
  • ropati
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:28am

    Hey Janet. No one is frightened by your empty threats. They are overshadowed by your lack of meaningful action. Reminds me of the time Bill Clinton said, “or else!” and there really wasn’t an “or else!” You are an ineffective parent making threats to his/her spoiled children. They already know there are no consequences. Your Poser-in-Chief boss has has already declared the border secure. Mission accomplished! Berlin built a wall that worked. Israel has a wall that works. Too bad your administration refuses to build the wall our taxpayers have already paid for.

    Report Post »  
  • nomercy63
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:19am

    DAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just figuring this out!

    Report Post »  
  • jb.kibs
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:19am

    so… how much money did they recover, from the drugs and weapons, in the past 10 years?

    i guess you can ask yourself one question… “Is it worth it?” … well? is it? …punk.

    Report Post »  
    • RepubliCorp
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:36am

      A good start would be for Obama stop planting US guns in Mexico so he could get his UN gun ban treaty!

      Report Post » RepubliCorp  
    • Rebuild the Temple
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:14am

      First, prohibition has never worked. Second, if the penalties for hiring illegals were a serious punishment, people would not hire illegals. The biggest wall to discourage illegals from residing inside of our states, would be the elimination of welfare and free services. Third, legal immigration to this country should be something that is a realistic goal to obtain and should not require ten years or more to accomplish.

      Report Post » Rebuild the Temple  
    • WeSoScrewed
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 4:42pm

      @rebuildthetemple very true, especially point number 3. making the process confusing is just more of a headache and costly for everybody involved. Just think how many man hours are wasted re-processing all of this paperwork?
      wesoscrewed.com

      Report Post »  
    • Uranium Wedge
      Posted on June 27, 2011 at 1:08am

      Um, yes?

      Report Post » Uranium Wedge  
  • Aaron in Polk County
    Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:07am

    There is a one size fits all solution.

    It’s a BIG ASS WALL. It worked for the Chinese against the Huns.

    Report Post » Aaron in Polk County  
    • Gold Coin & Economic News
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:12am

      Get real, we could control the Mexico border if we really wanted to. The truth is, we don’t want to. Put that in your crack pipe and smoke it.

      Report Post » Gold Coin & Economic News  
    • GETLIFE
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:23am

      Judge Escobar (say it with a Spanish accent) obviously doesn’t appreciate the wall. But there is no real discussion of its effectiveness.

      Report Post » GETLIFE  
    • let us prey
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:34am

      The administration does not want to take care of this for many reasons. There hoping to pull amnesty out of their hats for the extra [millions] of votes. They love La Raza dont they? The government will try to dilute this country with multiculturalism and it is failing miserably.

      Report Post » let us prey  
    • jjoy
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:57am

      ‘And if she could talk to would-be illegal immigrants, she’d say this: “There are more Border Patrol agents on that border than ever before. There are more customs officials. There is more technology. Do not throw in your lot with the cartels or the criminal organizations because the likelihood of getting caught, and the consequences of doing so are higher than ever before.”’

      What janet napolitano would really say would be “Come on over to the USA for your free food, housing, hospitalization and education… I have instructed the Border Patrol to let you cross un-molested… obama needs your vote in the up-coming presidential election of 2012…

      What nap Janet Napolitano could talk to Mexico’s drug cartel bosses, here’s what she says she would tell them: “Don’t even think about bringing your violence and tactics across this border. You will be met by an overwhelming response.”

      And if she could talk to would-be illegal immigrants, she’d say this: “There are more Border Patrol agents on that border than ever before. There are more customs officials. There is more technology. Do not throw in your lot with the cartels or the criminal organizations because the likelihood of getting caught, and the consequences of doing so are higher than ever before.”

      Report Post » jjoy  
    • 13th Imam
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:01am

      The whole southern border should be a military base. When intruders enter restricted military property, things happen. This invasion has to end.
      Anybody but Barry 2012

      Report Post » 13th Imam  
    • kramh
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:13am

      Instead of a wall we should move our military training bases to the border . They would train in a harsh climate and you would be foolish to try to cross them. Then put the border patrol where needed. You save money and train troops at the same time.

      Report Post »  
    • KICKILLEGALSOUT
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:26am

      There is a very easy solution. Bring our troops home from overseas, put them on the Northern and Southern borders and pass a law to shoot on site. A shoot on site law is the only way that we will deter illegal immigration because if the world knew they would be shot by approaching our borders they wouldn’t dare trying to cross. These are common sense solutions that would work but it will always be discredited because it doesn’t fit into their Amnesty plans and borderless North American Union agenda.

      Our government is not enforcing our laws anymore so we have to take the law into our own hands, we need to be smart and crafty about how to make the illegals leave your community and want to return back home, whether it is through disturbance, or through economic damage through repeated stealth vandalism.

      Report Post » KICKILLEGALSOUT  
    • Lux
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:29am

      Cost of illegals in California public schools… $900 per American child. Cost of illegal’s free medical care… $215.2 million. Total cost of illegal’s per year in California… $10.5 billion per year. Cost of defending out boarder… priceless.

      Report Post » Lux  
    • TomFerrari
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:47am

      We need to add that $90BILLION when calculating the cost of the illegals presence in the U.S. If they respected our borders and our sovereignty, they wouldn’t break federal law to enter our country – they would enter LEGALLY. It is their willingness to break our federal laws and enter ILLEGALLY that causes us to incur these expenses. An HONEST man wouldn’t cross a PAINTED line in the sand. A criminal will use “a 51ft ladder.”

      Now, recalculate their ‘contribution’ to the U.S. with the cost of border security included.
      Recalculate the cost of your strawberries and lettuce with the cost of border security included.
      Recalculate your payroll cost with the cost of border security included.
      Recalculate their social security contributions with the cost of border security included.
      Recalculate the cost to our school systems with the cost of border security included.
      Recalculate the cost of healthcare with the cost of border security included.
      Recalculate the cost of ‘in-state’ tuition with the cost of border security included.

      They set fires – don’t just listen to media regarding McCain. It IS a fact – look it up. (how much is THAT going to cost?)

      My LIBERAL doctor (an MD) tells me illegals (not just Mexican illegals) are bringing in TUBERCULOSIS and spreading it!

      They have PROVEN their willingness and readiness to break federal laws, by entering illegally.
      They have PROVEN their willingness and readiness to break state and federal laws, by packing bales of

      Report Post » TomFerrari  
    • MONICNE
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:55am

      I read all the comments

      The majority are from a select group of persons who have never worked on “controlling the border” and have visceral opinions based on their pre-conditional fears and mistrust.

      On Monday, you cry for more help, on Tuesday you complain about cost, on Wednesday you bash big Government, on Thursday you cry about the alien problem, on Friday you complain about the cost of vegetables and on Saturday complain about housing, then you take the rest of the week off to compile more fears down at Sunday school. And every day is “horrible half foreign president and his horrible wife and daughters” day.

      So many sad patriots. It’s just not right.

      We pity you for not being able to live happy and free in the USA. It is not that hard to open your hearts. It is not so hard to research the actual severity of the issues you fear.

      But I digress.

      Report Post » MONICNE  
    • SacredHonor1776
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:19am

      Walls won’t even work they can dig under or climb over walls easily.

      Landmines and auto-machine guns might act as deterrents, but who would justify that? The works wound be yelling out for human rights.

      Report Post »  
    • booger71
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:38am

      I guarantee this would work. 2400miles of a double 18‘ high fence 15’ apart. Topped with razor wire and the gap between the fences filled with 10′ high coils of razor wire. The fence would not be chained link but unclimbable “finger-wire”. This could be built by 240 separate teams in less than a year, and for less than 2 billion dollars.

      Report Post » booger71  
    • Pujols
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:50am

      We should bring our 43,000 troops home from South Korea and put them on the border.
      Put the 30,000 Obama wants to bring home from Middle East on the border. Then start sending these ILLEAGALS back home. With over 70,000 troops we can stop the drug wars too.

      WHAT THE HECK IS THE USA DOING? KILLING THEMSELVES & US WITH IT!

      Report Post »  
    • SacredHonor1776
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 12:10pm

      The coyotes aren’t stupid, they’d figure out how to cut through razor wire easily..

      Report Post »  
    • CatB
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 12:35pm

      Start shooting a few in the front .. the ones in the back will think twice before proceeding!

      TEA!

      Report Post »  
    • VoteBushIn12
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 12:35pm

      @LUX
      “… Cost of defending out boarder… priceless.”

      Uuummmm, actually I am pretty sure the article just said the cost was 90 Billion US Dollars. And you want to INCREASE security?

      Whatever happened to stop spending beyond our means?

      Report Post » VoteBushIn12  
    • CatB
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 12:36pm

      How about we arm our Border Patrol with more than BEAN BAG guns .. against Fast and Furious weapons supplied to the other side .. by OUR GOVERNMENT!

      TEA!

      Report Post »  
    • ozchambers
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 12:38pm

      This is one of the few expenditures the Constitution actually assigns to the Federal government, and THAT is the media decides to spend their time criticizing. Of course. The media are the enemy.

      Report Post » ozchambers  
    • SacredHonor1776
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 12:42pm

      Apparently other ways to get through razor wire involves using ropes and blankets to spread the wire and cover edges to create a hole to pass through.

      Report Post »  
    • silentwatcher
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 2:07pm

      Strategically placed sharpshooters 100 yards from the border with a pocketfull of ammo. A very cheap and effective alternative to the existing operation. I believe it would seriously minimize the illegal activities along the border.

      Report Post »  
    • Ruler4You
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 2:20pm

      Another good technology that works better than ANY thing else is being used around the perimeter of Area 51. It has been used for years and it works without excuses, failure or complaint. And can detect even the local fauna.

      We aren’t protecting the border(s) for a reason, unknown to the average citizen and unspoken among those that do know. How can I say that? Why would we allow this invasion to continue if we “can” stop it? Think about it.

      Report Post » Ruler4You  
    • shazam3
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 2:37pm

      When a violator of any crime in the US has no fear of his fate due to the ACLU and it’s many other groups that will nit pick every law enforcement officer with enormous court costs what do the illegals crossing border have to fear. They have no fear, they will be fed, housed and maybe even set free. Once the border has signs in every known language that says you will be shot upon entering will this country’s problem stop. When terrorists/criminals can blow up citzens and not fear the death penalty and get a roof over their heads and 3 meals a day and watch Al Jazeera TV over the cable what’s not to like. When murderers kill multitudes and spend the rest of their lives in relative security times have to change. We as a country have no respect and every one that sneaks into this country just thumbs their nose at us an defys our right to kick them out. Instead of sitting in prison with all the “perks” they need to start the chain gangs again. The “cruel and unusual” punishment BS needs to go. We are now a country of “*******”. We fight wars for people and countries that hate us. Let’s close all the borders, stop educating the rest of the world free, let’s stop training other countries military only to fight us years later, stop giving huge money to other countries for nothing but intimidation. Let’s lok after ourselves…..

      Report Post »  
    • USAPLISKENXI
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 2:55pm

      So how many billions is it costing us to have them here PLEASE
      secure the boarders.

      Report Post » USAPLISKENXI  
    • stacybernardslay
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 3:23pm

      One word – MINEFIELD. Several million Koreans can’t be wrong.

      Report Post »  
    • BoiseBaked
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 4:59pm

      Would you expect anything more from the Obama boobs.

      Report Post »  
    • Rayblue
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 6:26pm

      @ruler4you, you know then.
      The technology is being used at strategic areas and has been in place since 9/11 and before.
      Nobody talks for obvious reasons. It could be used but the will to do so is sorely lacking.
      Or it is in place and the information is being ignored. For political reasons.

      Report Post » Rayblue  
    • banjarmon
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:22pm

      When they catch an illegal immigrant crossing the Border, hand him a canteen, rifle and some ammo and ship him to Afghanistan ….

      Tell him if he wants to come to AMERICA then he must serve a tour in OUR military….

      Give him a soldier‘s pay while he’s there and tax him on it……

      After his tour, he will be allowed to become a citizen since he defended this country…..
      He will also be registered to be taxed and be a legal resident…..

      Report Post » banjarmon  
    • hifi74
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 11:40pm

      MONICNE
      Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:55am
      I read all the comments

      The majority are from a select group of persons who have never worked on “controlling the border” and have visceral opinions based on their pre-conditional fears and mistrust.

      On Monday, you cry for more help, on Tuesday you complain about cost, on Wednesday you bash big Government, on Thursday you cry about the alien problem, on Friday you complain about the cost of vegetables and on Saturday complain about housing, then you take the rest of the week off to compile more fears down at Sunday school. And every day is “horrible half foreign president and his horrible wife and daughters” day.

      So many sad patriots. It’s just not right.

      We pity you for not being able to live happy and free in the USA. It is not that hard to open your hearts. It is not so hard to research the actual severity of the issues you fear.

      But I digress.
      ————————————————————————————

      I pity you for being too stupid to stay on topic. Here’s an idea, try having an honest discusion instead of spewing insults liek a flailing toddler that just fell on it’s back and you know what? People might actually respond to you in kind. But instead you would rather spew out lies and insults to a group of people that have more patriotism in their little pinky then you would be able to resolve in the entirety of your being.

      Report Post » hifi74  
    • Sound The Trumpet In Zion
      Posted on June 27, 2011 at 7:42am

      Well, all they have to do is bring our soldiers home and use them to protect our borders instead of the of other countries. This would help bring the cost down and we would be better protected if the first muslim of the United States let them protect it. He probably doesn‘t want that thoughg so that his muslim friends won’t have so much difficulty crossing the border illegally.

      Report Post » Sound The Trumpet In Zion  
    • jkendal
      Posted on June 27, 2011 at 8:46am

      There is a one size fits all solution to this problem. And it won’t even be considered until we get rid of the current regime…..

      Report Post »  
    • V-MAN MACE
      Posted on June 27, 2011 at 10:16am

      Those mobile Guard Towers are coming to a street corner near you.

      Guess who’s going to be manning this STANDING ARMY in our free America?

      The damn TSA Nazi Thugs.

      RESIST THE NAZI POLICE STATE!

      Report Post » V-MAN MACE  
    • Secret Squirrel
      Posted on June 28, 2011 at 10:51am

      .
      It’s still cheaper than paying for all the illegals.
      You know, if mexicans thought they wouldn’t succeed, they wouldn’t be flooding here for free stuff.
      Cut off the free stuff, enforce the LAW, and the problem will solve itself.

      Tell me again how NAFTA was going to solve all these problems?

      Report Post » Secret Squirrel  
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