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Immigration See other Immigration Articles Title: Guest Opinion: Minutemen's weapons are cell phones and cameras Guest Opinion: Minutemen's weapons are cell phones and cameras TOM TANCREDO President Bush criticized the Minutemen, the estimated 1,000 citizens who are gathering on the Arizona-Mexico border today to protest the government's failure to secure our borders. Bush called these patriots "vigilantes" and offered his alternative to citizen protest: "rational enforcement of our laws." That is an odd thing for him to say in this context. Rational enforcement of our laws would mean stopping illegal immigrants at the border, something he is unwilling to do. The name "Minutemen" may be an unfortunate choice since these volunteers plan to carry primarily cameras and cell phones. They are coming to help the Border Patrol spot illegal immigrants entering our country. TIME magazine says more than 3 million illegal immigrants slipped past the undermanned Border Patrol last year. Unlike the president, most Americans do not see this disaster as "rational enforcement" of our laws. Most citizens see it as an outrageous breach of national security. Millions are perplexed and angered by the president's willful blindness to the dangers posed by open borders. Minutemen from 40 states are gathering in Tombstone for a rally to kick off their monthlong vigil. From all the criticism they're getting, you'd think they were bringing hand grenades, not cell phones. In April 2004, 64,563 illegal immigrants were caught in the Tucson sector. This year, Minutemen will observe activities along a 20-mile stretch of border near the San Pedro River, a virtual superhighway for smuggling. Teams will watch for people crossing the border and report what they see to the Border Patrol. That's all. The volunteers will not try to halt illegal immigrants; they will merely report what they see. If the Border Patrol does not apprehend the suspects, the Minutemen will not try to stop them. The Minutemen are worried not only about the numbers, but also about who is stealing across our borders. We all should be worried: n More than 76,000 captured intruders in 2004 came from countries other than Mexico. n Al-Qaeda has considered using Mexico to infiltrate terrorists into the United States, says congressional testimony this February by the deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. n In March, FBI Director Robert Mueller testified that hundreds of "special interest immigrants" from countries with terrorist cells already have entered the United States through Mexico. n Authorities believe al-Qaeda has tried to enlist help from the Salvadoran-based MS-13 criminal syndicate to smuggle terrorists into the United States. n Among those apprehended on our borders last year, 23,000 were known criminals. About 10 percent of our nation's jail and prison population now are illegal immigrants. Yet our president invites the president of Mexico to his Texas ranch and deems the Minutemen "vigilantes." That is not only slanderous, but also stupid. It makes as much sense as your police chief calling Neighborhood Watch a bunch of vigilantes. Most communities would replace that chief if he didn't apologize. Our open borders are a national catastrophe. Despite many warnings, our leaders refuse to "connect the dots." Taking control of our borders might offend Mexico, which received $16 billion in cash remittances last year from its citizens in our country. Securing the borders also might inconvenience employers who exploit cheap labor. The price of french fries at Burger King might rise 5 cents, and Safeway would have to contract with janitorial firms that hire only legal workers. Could the world's strongest economy survive such an adjustment in the labor pool? Ask Wal-Mart. Now Mexico is protesting that the Minutemen threaten the human rights of Mexican immigrants. Talk about chutzpah! Mexico long has promoted and aided illegal entry into our country. U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., was right to tell Mexican Foreign Secretary Derbez that his inflammatory statements might be interpreted as unwarranted interference in American affairs. The Minutemen have pledged to obey all laws. They have met with the sheriff, police and Border Patrol, told them what they are doing and given them maps of where they will be. They have invited the media to come along. Do vigilantes invite the Los Angeles Times and CNN to ride along? The Border Patrol is understandably concerned about the potential for violence if the Minutemen run into gun-toting drug smugglers. But that is a danger local citizens face every day. If violence breaks out during this protest, the ultimate responsibility rests squarely on the federal government for failure to secure our borders. Citizens shouldn't have to help the Border Patrol, but the agency clearly is spread too thin. Perhaps the president could do his duty and ask for the funds to get the job done? The Border Patrol has only 10,500 agents nationwide to guard 6,000 miles of border, and the Tucson sector has only 2,200 agents, though 46 percent of the border crossings in 2002 (more than 490,000) occurred in that sector. Yet the White House has reneged on a promise to fund 2,000 more Border Patrol agents in the 2006 budget. If our officials took their oath of office as a solemn pledge, our borders would be secure, and the protest in Arizona would not be happening. But that would be a different country than where we live today. U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo is a Colorado Republican.
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