http://maps.google.com/maps?q=benson+az&spn=1.839844,3.842340&hl=en
There are only about 4 or 5 roads that need to be checked in Southern Arizona.
Posted on 04/30/2005 2:46:13 PM PDT by axes_of_weezles
The head of the U.S. Border Patrol says his agency is hampered by its inability to put up permanent checkpoints on roads in southeastern Arizona.
David Aguilar told a Senate hearing Thursday that no similar prohibition exists in other border states, but appropriations provisions have required that all checkpoints be temporary and be moved every two weeks in Arizona.
Critics say permanent checkpoints, which force motorists to pull off roads leading away from the border for inspections, disrupt trade and traffic.
But Aguilar said they have proven effective in other states.
Congressman Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., is behind the provisions that prevent permanent checkpoints. He said they are ineffective because illegal immigrants can simply sneak around them.
An Open Borders RINO Republican.
Are you folks who defend open borders going to defend this "Republican" because he is a "Republican" and defend his and Bush's border policies or are you ever going to come to your senses before it's the downfall of the country and conservatism?
Does being open borders make him a RINO or part of the Republican mainstream? (not saying it should be)
Let's see.
Kolbe is an open homosexual.
He does not support conservative causes; has broken promises to his conservative constituents.
He is an advocate of forcing the DoD to take open homosexuals.
How he gets away with micromanaging the BP is beyond credibility; but he probably inserted language as amendments in funding bills.
Checkpoints might not be an efficient use of manpower. The crossings in San Diego Sector were much reduced when they shifted personnel from "defense in depth" (i.e. checkpoints and interior enforcement) to putting agents directly on the border. Not to say that once you've gotten the crossings under control that you can't add manpower back to interior enforcement. But if your resources are limited, it seems to be more effective to concentrate them right at the point of crossing. The agents hate it because it's boring - they mostly sit in their cars and stare South for the entire shift. It's much more fun to be out chasing people. I spoke to some guys from one of the BP groups that gets to do the sign cutting and pursuit stuff. Due to some administrative thing, they had to go back "on the line" for a couple of weeks, and they could hardly stand it.
Who are these people who want the borders open at places other than the official border crossings, where stuff can be checked out?
The view that we build these huge fancy border crossing complexes, but let people walk around them is the most ridiculous political view I've ever heard.
He personally is the reason there are Minutemen. His constituents are Pima and Cochise Counties.
The BP had checkpoints consistently manned up to about 7 or 8 years ago. Kolbe attatched amendments to funding bills to prevent the Border Patrol from operating checkpoints on a regular basis.
The roads in southern AZ are chokepoints and it was sensible of the BP to operate the checkpoints where they did.
They caught too many illegals.
having driven thru' socal, az, nm, and tx for years, day and night, my impression of these border check points is that they are more for the impression, inconvenience, and sometimes intimidation of u.s. citizens.
even u.s. congress people have criticized these check points.
point taken
It makes life difficult for illegals as well as inconveniencing citizens.
Kinda like travelling on an airline post 9/11.
I presume you are fully supportive of all DHS actions including proctological exams at airports?
after 9.11 how can you not be supportive of security at the borders?
but the question is, are these measures working?
obviously, not.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=benson+az&spn=1.839844,3.842340&hl=en
There are only about 4 or 5 roads that need to be checked in Southern Arizona.
Exactly. What else did you expect from a Republican. We need a new Hadrians Wall...
Kolbe is again going to face a conservative Republican challenger in the primary election. Randy Graf announced his candidacy on Thursday and is committed to bringing border security back to Cochise County and the rest of the border.
The Border Patrol is complaining they cant man the checkpoints because Kolbe attatched language to their funding preventing them from using them.
They were effective prior to NAFTA and his amendments.
Of course they don't work now. The BP cannot run permanent checkpoints or temporary ones in certain chokepoints because of the language Kolbe put in their Operations funding.
Does Randy have a website up yet?
"Exactly. What else did you expect from a Republican. We need a new Hadrians Wall..."
Since this is text, I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not.
Support Randy Graf in '06 bump!
If you live in or have friends in the Tucson area, it's time to get spun up on Randy's candidacy. He's not a one-issue conservative, but this is one of his main issues.
That's hardly a sterling commendation.
There isn't enough traffic through any of the three checkpoints (three 2- or 4-lane State Highways) we're talking about for them to be a hindrance. I don't mind driving through them.
Kolbe the bigshot AZ fegala. Maybe his current lover boy is from south of the border
Apparently, the locals are complaining.
Going up to the Repub HQ's on Monday to get a Graf bumper sticker.
u.s. congress people criticized the checkpoints on the 5, at san clemente, and the 15, at temecula. these are high-volume checkpoints. sometimes when the traffic backs up for miles, the bp relents and just lets the traffic thru'.
in both cases, these points make some sense. the 5 has a nuclear reactor nearby and camp pendleton. both installations inhibit illegals. when i lived in san diego county my next door neighbor was marine security; he spent his nights picking up illegals.
temecula is also mountainous and rife with rattlesnakes. rattlesnakes hunt at night. it's very steep and difficult to get around. indian reservations nearby probably are conduits for illegals.
both of these check points are a good distance from the border--70 miles.
the criticism by the u.s. congress people was, why not put more resources >closer to the border<? also, why inconvenience american citizens when >the border is not protected well<? these issues remain unanswered.
likewise, the new, post-9.11, checkpoint east of san diego in the mountains on the i-8 can easily be circumvented by those knowledgeable about the roads and terrain.
imperial county at night ... is a war zone. unbelievable.
my complaint was about the new, post 9.11, checkpoint at about mile 67 east of yuma is intimidating at night. the bp has intense lights shining into your car, dogs and armed personnel, a dune buggy at the ready near by, etc.
i did not like it when i went thru' at night. going thru' in the day is more relaxed.
the similar checkpoint east of ft. stockton in texas on the i-10 is easier going, altho' i've always gone thru' there in the day, not night.
passing thru' these check points at night is very different than in the day.
i've seen no checkpoints on the 10 in eastern az or nm.
The "on and off" border checkpoints are a waste of time. Spotters simply observe the checkpoints, and when they close, they call the smugglers who have the illegals stashed in nearby clown houses, and they all drive through. Checkpoints need to be 24/7, or not at all.
Okay, Ken, now I understand where you're coming from.
The logic in my response mirrors what you're saying, sort of. In Cochise County, the 10 parallels the border and is about 35 miles north of it, give or take. There are three routes from the border to the 10: AZ Highways 90 and 80, and US 161.
Checkpoints on those routes are very effective. With them, you don't need to stop traffic on I-10. And vehicular traffic in this county is light enough, that when a vehicle goes off road it's as obvious as a whale in a fishpond.
What works here won't work in San Diego County, as you point out. What we are upset about is the our Rep. put language in a funding bill the hamstring the BP at work.
agree.
yeah.
there's another issue that doesn't get figured into the mix here on illegal immigration:
i was in tucson for awhile. there are a lot of alphabet soup feds living there. i met some and they told me that when they're hot on some pursuit, not infrequently they are called off.
they point to people in the management levels of our government that are bought off by the drug cartels.
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