Tancredo Rips Government’s Spying of Minutemen

tancredo.house.gov ^ | 05/09/2006 | Will Adams

[NapkinUser]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressmen Tom Tancredo (R-CO) decried a recently-disclosed U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) practice of tipping off the Mexican military to the location of Minutemen volunteers. According to a story in this morning’s Inland Daily Bulletin, CBP notifies the Mexican government of when and where the Minutemen are planning to monitor the border and if violence is used by the Minutemen against illegal aliens. There has not been one verified instance of Minutemen volunteers using violence against illegal aliens.

“The Mexican military doesn’t exactly have a ‘good government’ reputation. The Border Patrol has documented more than two hundred incursions into the U.S by the Mexican military, and Texas sheriffs even apprehended Mexican government vehicles that were used to ferry drug runners across the border. By tipping off Mexico’s military to the Minutemen’s location, the U.S. government is asking for trouble,” said Tancredo.

“Heavily-armed military officials stationed only yards from civilians are at least intimidating. I can only surmise that the Border Patrol bureaucrats’ spying is meant to have a chilling effect on the Minutemen’s recruitment of more volunteers,” said Tancredo.

“The Minutemen haven’t been accused of breaking the law. Quite the contrary—they have gone out of their way to aid law enforcement and ensure the safety of our border. The U.S. government has no grounds upon which to stifle the Minutemen’s constitutional right to organize,” Tancredo concluded. “I want to know the legal basis for CBP informing a foreign government of the activities of private citizens who are obeying the law.”

[MissAmericanPie]

Heads need to roll over this, of course they won't. They will probably all get awards like they did after Waco and Ruby Ridge.

[houeto]

He does what he says he is going to do.

"I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."

As for voting for him twice, would you have preferred Gore or Kerry?

Not a chance. Here's the problem though. The parties are pretty evenly divided on a national level. Legalize these 11 to 30 million illegals and the Dems will find a way to get their votes. That will be the eternal end of conservatives at the Presidential ballot boxes. We simply will no longer have the numbers.

[Uncle Jaque]

Re your #51-

"If the Minutemen do nothing wrong, they have nothing to fear."

I wouldn't be so sure about that.

Whatever the corrupt Mex. military knows, it's safe to assume that the drug runners and coyotes know as well, probably within minutes.

And all they have to do is use their INS/USBP supplied intel to hunt down said MM group, cross over and massacre them... or worse, kidnap them and drag them back over the border into Mexico for "interrogation".

US Drug agents that are caught in Mexico are oftimes found, if at all, tortured to death, and their bodies horribly mutilated.

And if that's what it takes to disuade Bush's meddlesome "Vigalantes" from dabbling in his agenda, he might not be above facilitating something like that, sad to say.

I think that it's popularly called a "setup".

Now that Bush and Co. are providing targeting vectors on MM to the enemy, said MM had best be particularly circumspect in their operations, I opine.

And don't discount the possibility of "friendly fire" if all else fails to drive them off of the border.

Enemies to the front; enemies to the rear...
Watch your flanks, y'all!

[Tarheel]

After 9/11 and the brave people on Flight 93, many people felt that passengers would never sit back and not try to stop a potential disaster. Sure enough that was the case on the AA flight that had Richard Reid, the shoe bomber, on board. In that case, Reid was wrestled to the floor by the passengers and firmly tied up with anything the passengers could get their hands on and no Federal Air Marshall was on board to help as I recall. Reid was fortunate he was not beaten to within an inch of his life. There were some injuries to a flight attendant and others but they got the job done. They prevented a disaster.

I look upon the Minutemen in the same way--they are doing the job that the American government will not do, is unable to do, cannot do or all of the above. I believe the government is actively working against the Minutemen because the government, by its refusal to protect and defend our borders from foreign invaders, has gotten itself into a bind.

Washington does not intend to tolerate a bunch of ordinary folks, working off a shoe string budget and an abundance of patriotism, that are able to help defend our country. Why that smacks of self reliance and common sense and you know those bureaucrats do not like those words! Why the next thing you know folks out here in 'flyover' country or on the coast will be asking the Feds to follow the Constitution! Wouldn't that get the politicians knickers in a knot!

[DoughtyOne]

You spoke for a lot of us with those comments.

[hedgetrimmer]

Oh come on, even on the Mexican side of the border, all they need is a cheap set of binoculars to find out where they are

Then let them do that. Its scary that an american citizen would condone the federal government passing information along to a foreign government about private citizens who are doing nothing illegal in our own country. Why do you defend it?

[Arizona Carolyn]

Too late, cat is out of the bag.

[MissAmericanPie]

Like I have said before, if your not on some list, you should be ashamed of yourself.

[Arizona Carolyn]

I noticed that... some people I've quit responding to for that reason.

[Refinersfire]

"If the Minutemen do nothing wrong, they have nothing to fear. The government spies on everyone else, why should they be exempt?"

We are not to fear our Government, the Government is to fear us... what a great Tory you would make.. :-(

[Leatherneck_MT]

Then it's high time we change our government.

By whatever means necessary.

[houeto]

http://michellemalkin.com/

[processing please hold]

The high jacking

What they accuse us of. Isn't that a liberal tactic, do as I say, not as I do?

[Arizona Carolyn]

Send the envelope back with $1 and a note telling them why you are angry. Ignored requests or sending back without money doesn't get the comments recorded, but if you are making a donation, they have to record your comments.

[Arizona Carolyn]

Our Republican reps in AZ keep trying to do so and our democratic Governor keeps vetoing the bills.

[MaineVoter2002]

Up until I saw this story I supported The Patriot Act if this story is true The Patriot Act is being abused by the administration I trusted to have it.

[Dane]

Its scary that an american citizen would condone the federal government passing information along to a foreign government about private citizens who are doing nothing illegal in our own country. Why do you defend it?

And have any private citizens obeying the law been arrested, no.

But even you have to admit that a violent nutball or two could blend in with the minutemen and cause an international incident.

[Jim Robinson]

Attention:

Those of you who are calling for revolution, secession, violence, impeachment, etc, will no longer be posting on FR. Sheesh, it's a phony report (pure Marxist propaganda), but it sure is exposing a lot of hothead idiot trolls.

[Ben Mugged]

The commissioner of CBP is Deborah J. Spero. Prior to assuming leadership of the Office of Strategic Trade, Ms. Spero served for five years as Customs’ Assistant Commissioner for Human Resources Management, where she was responsible for a centralized human resources service center of 250 employees that supported 19,000 Customs employees throughout the United States and overseas. In 1999, Ms. Spero received the Distinguished Presidential Rank Award for her sustained extraordinary accomplishments within the Customs Service and the federal community. In 1996 she was the recipient of the Meritorious Executive Presidential Rank Award for her major accomplishments as an executive in the corporate SES. Ms. Spero graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English Literature.

She does not list an email or phone number but her Office of Public Affairs official is Kristi Clemens (202) 344-1770. Lets give her a call shall we?

[MaineVoter2002]

The Patriot Act against Patriots