Posted on 08/22/2007 10:23:18 AM PDT by Califreak
Hunter Pushes President to Build Border Fence
Media Advisory…
Presidential candidate Duncan Hunter to hold a press conference Wednesday Aug 21, 2007
- calls on President to commence fence construction in Texas
August 21, 2007
(Grapevine, TX)….United States Congressman Duncan Hunter is holding a press conference Wednesday Aug 21 at 2:00 p.m. to give an update on the border fence issue.
The press conference will be held outside the main entrance at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, 1501 Gaylord Trail, Grapevine, TX.
Hunter, a Republican candidate for President, will utilize the press conference to give an updated status report on the progress or lack of progress on the construction of the border fence.
Hunter has been the “lead man” on the issue of immigration. He has led the way for tight border security and for extraditing the immigrants who are in this country illegally. Hunter drafted legislation that was signed into law October 26, 2006, which mandates the construction of 854 miles of double fencing across the smugglers routes of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Hunter campaigning in Texas since last week noted “The Texas border remains wide open.” Hunter continued, “Not a single inch of border fence has been built in Texas since President Bush signed the Secure Fence Act into law.”
In a letter to President Bush, Hunter urged acceleration of fence construction, asking the President to immediately direct the Department of Homeland Security to execute contracts in a manner that fencing locations as identified in the bill are constructed concurrently.
The meager 17.9 miles of fence that has been finished are in different states. The department of Homeland Security has the money and the mandate, but “the administration has a ‘case of the slows’ in getting the fence built.” He pledged that he would see that the fence is constructed within six month after his election as President.
For additional information or comments, contact Roy Tyler, National Communications Director
Cell (928) 941-1079 or Email roy@gohunter08.com
For additional Presidential campaign information visit www.GoHunter08.com
#
Ping
Front-runner for me.
You go... Hunter. But I fear it will never be built... with the powers that be and the deals they make.
Good luck to Hunter on this issue. All of Congress could call/demand/ threaten on GW to continue to build the fence, but don’t expect it to happen. 13 or so miles have been built. We may if we are lucky have 20 before GW leaves office in 17 months.
Side note, stayed at the Gaylord for a conference, not a bad place to stay considering everything is under one roof.
We can't possibly do that. We must send more money to Africa, don't you know that?????
Heh. Next stop Crawford?
Proofreader needs a proofreader.
Bush signed the bill authorizing the fence, authorized Chertoff to waive all environmental obstacles and successfully beat back the envirowhackos in court on this issue. Now it is up to the Homeland Security Subcommittees of the Senate Appropriations Committees to actually pony up the money.
The truth is that there was initial funding of $1.2 billion to the Department of Homeland Security marked for border security, but not specifically for the border fence and the law withholds $950 million of it until the House and Senate appropriations committees approve the design, location and length of the fence. At the estimated $3M per mile, how much fence are you gonna build with ~$50M? Not much. Also, just like Hunter's grandstanding is now, it was only an election year ploy...they passed the authorization in September, right before the elections.
To make matters worse, Congress is still holding this up, and they went on vacation without taking care of it. Bush had originally threatened to veto the defense bill because Congress added so much pork to it. Congress then attached the funding for the fence to the defense bill to insure Bush couldn't veto all the pork they added to this bill without inflaming his base on the fence issue.
Here's a recent article on the subject:
Conservative lawmakers who say the American people need a signal that Congress is serious about cracking down on illegal immigration pushed Wednesday for more border security funding in a defense spending bill.
The Senate gave a nod to one of those efforts, agreeing 94-3 to an amendment to the Defense Department appropriations bill providing $1.83 billion for 370 miles of triple-layered fencing and 461 miles of vehicle barriers on the U.S.-Mexican border.
The defense bill is far from final. A vote on the larger spending bill is pending and if passed would have to be reconciled with the House bill.
The Senate immigration bill authorizes construction of 370 miles of fencing and several more miles of vehicle barriers but does not provide funding for them. The House has authorized but not funded 700 miles of fencing.
More shenanigans:
Senate Votes Down Funding Of Border Fence
Democrats Vote Against Funding Border Fence
As a side note, I can't believe the number of people on here that don't know the difference between authorization and appropriations:
Authorization and Appropriations
Bottom line, Hunter needs to put our tax money where his mouth is.
Hunter is the man! The more Fred stagnates, the more Hunter beams. I really wish he’d capture national attention. I want him more than Fred!!
WASHINGTON — A law to erect hundreds of miles of fence on the U.S.-Mexican border is on the books and money to start it has been okayed, but Republicans are nervous that now that they've lost control of Congress, they'll never see it built.
The law passed last year says Congress, now in control of Democrats who generally oppose the fence, don't have to release money to build it until they approve of how the fence will be built. Based on the comments of some Democrats, there's no rush to make that happen.
A separate law funding Homeland Security Department spending provided $1.2 billion for the fencing. But that law also withholds $950 million of the sum until the House and Senate appropriations committees approve the department's plan for spending the money, giving those committees say over the design, location and length of the fence. Attempts to get comment from the chairmen of the House and Senate appropriations committees were unsuccessful.
But Republicans have been pushing nonetheless, restating their arguments for a fence and dashing off letters to President Bush, asking him to request more money for the fence's construction in his 2008 budget.
An excerpt from the 2008 DHS budget says:
$1 billion is added to border fencing and infrastructure.BUT...an amendment was added:
Sponsor: Rep. David E. Price (D-NC-4th) Vote: A motion to recommit the bill to assure implementation of border fencing and other technology and infrastructure on the southern border was not agreed to June 15, 2007 200 TO 217 (RC 490). The House passed the bill June 15, 2007 268 to 150 (RC 491) The Senate agreed to the bill amended July 26, 2007 89 to 4 RV 282
IOW, they voted down the amendment on the border fencing. They then added it to the Defense Appropriations bill, which they have not voted on yet, per my previous post. They are playing parlor tricks on all of us.
Hunter is playing y’all for fools with his parlor tricks on the fence.
Hunter shows up at the border with a roll of chicken wire, a couple of wooden stakes, a claw hammer and a staple gun. He offers to help President Bush build the fence that he is bound by law to build. After setting up about 20 feet of chicken wire fence Hunter announces, "It's better than what our President, whose sworn duty it is to protect the American People, has done."
This idea comes without copywrite and may be used by any candidate except Hillary Clinton.
signed,
Dr. Thorne
Good grief, look what the cat dragged in!!
Bottom line, Hunter needs to put our tax money where his mouth is.
http://www.gaylordhotels.com/gaylordtexan/
Thanks for the post. Good detail. Playing the old shell game with the dollars. Meanwhile it is costing taxpayers millions and millions everyday with illegal immigrants crossing over.
BTW, I do not think the new fences alone will deter illegals coming over.
True, but double fences with a border patrol road in between (the Hunter Fence) and sensors works real, real good.
Front-runner for me.
Me too.
border patrol road in between (the Hunter Fence) and sensors works real, real good.
Tunnels work for the illegals.
Maybe a little extreme, but a stop, stop twice than shoot may prevent a lot from coming over. Otherwise the cat and mouse games continue.
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