Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, right, accompanied by Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, gestures during a news conference on the state of immigration, Monday, June 9, 2008, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Posted on 06/09/2008 1:05:54 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government has decided to award Boeing contracts for the construction of two sections of a high-tech fence to be built along the border with Mexico in Arizona, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said on Monday.
The two fence sections would be an "operational configuration" of a much-criticized 28-mile (45-km) section of "virtual fence" built by Boeing and tested earlier, Chertoff told a news conference.
He said the fence would include fixed towers, with radar sensors, remote control cameras, ground sensors and software linking border agents to give them a "common operating picture" of the areas they are enforcing.
Chertoff dismissed earlier reports of deep trouble with the test section, which had been delayed by several months due to technical problems, including communications and software glitches and fuzzy video images.
At the news conference, called to give an update on U.S. immigration and immigration-control programs, Chertoff also said the government would require all federal contractors to participate in an electronic system to verify that employees are not illegal immigrants.
Illegal immigration has been a simmering issue in this year's presidential campaign. Some Republicans have criticized the party's candidate, Sen. John McCain, for not being tough enough against illegal immigration, while McCain has criticized the virtual fence's problems as a disgrace.
Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama has suggested high-tech controls could minimize the need for physical fencing.
Chertoff said he expected that efforts to control immigration to be fully successful, as defined by the government, by "sometime in 2011."
theres the perfect reason to build a WALL
Virtual fence? Waste of time and money. A tv camera ain’t gonna stop anybody.
A virtual fence? To stop what, virtual illeagles? With that kind of title I was hoping for a laser cannon or two with perhaps a pinpoint M60 every 400 meters.
Cinder Blocks, Barbed Wire and Land Mines would be cheaper.
Wow, they’re sure jumping all over this. Wit any luck, they should have it finished in 300 years.
After taunting the camera some desert desperado will steal it.
I feeel for all the displaced native animals and such a heckuva lot more than the human wave from south of the border.
At least we should have good photos of them as they cross. :-)
I thought the latest report a few months back was that the “virtual fence” was a huge waste of money that would never work. Not that we’re surprised.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, right, accompanied by Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, gestures during a news conference on the state of immigration, Monday, June 9, 2008, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
“Chertoff dismissed earlier reports of deep trouble with the test section”
Did he also dismiss the reports of Boeing subcontractors hiring illegals?
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=b6fbd5b2185f3b7e4a18990da8b850ca
.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, right, accompanied by
Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, gestures during a news conference
on the state of immigration, Monday, June 9, 2008, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Come on, not even Boeing can make a virtual fence along the US/Mex border fly!
ping
Gee, I feel safer already.....don’t you? /sarc/
BOEING?! LOL!
im sure the ranchers down along the mex border will sleep good tonight :)
Can’t beat 100,000 pairs of human eyes.
I think some of the big ranchers are against the fence. At least where it cuts across their property and cuts them off to their water. I believe a lot of the fence is tied up in lawsuits regarding property rights.
The virtual fence is also a way around all of the environmental laws and lawsuits.
Now if they could only get the seismic and motion sensors rigged up to a .50 caliber. Or perhaps Predator fly-overs.
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