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Immigration See other Immigration Articles Title: ELECTION TIME: U.S. House approves $700M for border security The Southwest border could see an additional 1,200 U.S. Border Patrol agents, more than 500 U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and other initiatives to fight narcotics smuggling and drug-related violence that were included in a supplemental appropriations bill approved late last week by the U.S. House of Representatives. The $701 million included in the emergency spending measure represents one of the largest ever infusions of federal funding for border security programs. U.S. Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi, said the funding included in the bill for additional personnel along the border represents a more cost-effective strategy to fight drug smuggling and illegal immigration than previous attempts. "We misspent a lot on technology and a border fence that is not helping anyone," Ortiz said. "They’re still coming across. What we need to do is to give more boots on the ground." The bill was approved a month after President Barack Obama’s administration requested the funding to seal holes along the porous U.S.-Mexico border while also announcing it would send 1,200 National Guard troops to beef up security. Southern border lawmakers, including all three U.S. Representatives from the Rio Grande Valley, wrote a letter in April requesting similar funding to support law enforcement in border states by including at least $500 million in the emergency spending measure for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2010 includes: >> $208.4 million for 1,200 additional Border Patrol agents to be deployed between the ports of entry. >> $136 million to maintain current Customs and Border Protection officer staffing levels and add an additional 500 officers. >> $50 million to support local law enforcement activities through Operation Stonegarden, a grant limited to agencies that operate along the border. >> $35.5 million to improve tactical communications, establish three permanent Border Patrol forward operating bases and expand workforce integrity investigations designed to prevent corruption among law enforcement officers. >> $201 million for Department of Justice agencies such as the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and U.S. Attorney’s Offices to increase law enforcement activities on the border. U.S. Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, D-Mercedes, said in a statement that the supplemental provisions included in the larger spending bill are needed during a time of extreme violence along the Mexican border. "I have always maintained that we should give our federal agents along the border the equipment and manpower they need to help defend our border," U.S. Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, D-Mercedes, said in a statement. "The addition of 1,200 Border Patrol agents along our Southwest border and 500 additional Customs and Border Protection Agents will certainly strengthen our border security." The state’s Republican leadership has criticized the federal government for not doing enough to combat deadly violence from drug cartels and transnational gangs. After gunfire fired from Mexico struck the El Paso City Hall last week, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott wrote that the "state is under constant assault from illegal activity threatening a porous border" in a letter asking the White House to make border security its top priority. And Gov. Rick Perry also complained last week that the Obama administration’s plan to send about 20 percent — or about 250 soldiers — out of 1,200 National Guard troops being deployed to the Southwest was "insufficient to meet the needs of securing the Texas-Mexico border." About 235 of those troops are slated for the Rio Grande Valley under the current plan, where they will assist in reconnaissance and as analysts. More than 500 troops will be sent to Arizona beginning in August. With Texas covering the bulk of the U.S.-Mexico border, it deserved a greater share of the troops sent to the Southwest border, said U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo. But with violence in Mexico persisting, the troops and federal funding will protect border communities at the frontlines. "When you add all that together, you’re talking about putting a lot of resources on the border that will help prevent the spillover from coming over here," Cuellar said. "It’s been difficult for Mexico, but I have hope."
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