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On October 26, 2006, U.S. President George W. Bush signed the Secure Fence Act of 2006 (Pub.L. 109–367) into law stating, “This bill will help protect the American people. This bill will make our borders more secure. It is an important step toward immigration reform." The bill was introduced on Sep. 13, 2006 by Peter T. King (R-NY). In the House of Representatives, the Fence Act passed 283 -138 on September 14, 2006. On September 29, 2006 – the Fence Act passed in the Senate 80 -19. The Secure Fence Act of 2006’s goal is to help secure America’s borders...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) today commented on tomorrow's White House signing of the Secure Fence Act passed by the Republican Congress. "Our borders constitute the first line of defense in protecting the American people from terrorists. Last July I met with border security agents and other federal and local officials during my visit to the border, and I promised them we would address this national security crisis. The Republican Congress has responded to the American people's demand for a secure border by increasing the physical barriers and infrastructure along the...

Democrat Leaders Voted Against Measure and Support Open BordersTo: National Desk Contact: Ron Bonjean or Lisa C. Miller, 202-225-2800, both of the Office of House Speaker Dennis Hastert WASHINGTON, Oct. 23 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, M.D. (R-Tenn.) made the following statement after sending the Secure Fence Act to the President for his signature: "Today we are transmitting H.R. 6061, Secure Fence Act of 2006, to the president. This legislation is a key component to keeping America safe and stemming the tide of illegal immigration. The American...

Bishop William Skylstad, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has sent a letter to President George W. Bush asking him to veto H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act of 2006 that would authorize construction of up to 700 miles of fencing and barriers along the southern border of Mexico. "To be clear, the U.S. Catholic bishops are supportive of efforts to enforce immigration law and secure our borders, so long as the mechanism and strategies applied toward this end protect human dignity and protect human life," Bishop Skylstad wrote. "However, we are opposed to this legislation because...

Mexico's foreign secretary said Monday the country may take a dispute over U.S. plans to build a fence on the Mexican border to the United Nations. Luis Ernesto Derbez told reporters in Paris, his first stop on a European tour, that a legal investigation was under way to determine whether Mexico has a case. The Mexican government last week sent a diplomatic note to Washington criticizing the plan for 700 miles of new fencing along the border. President-elect Felipe Calderon also denounced the plan, but said it was a bilateral issue that should not be put before the international community....

More on Fence Rumors [Kathryn Jean Lopez] Captain Ed thinks Kaus is paranoid: I checked with a source on the Hill yesterday, who says that we have nothing to worry about on the Secure Fence Act: Yesterday I analyzed the possibility that the lack of a presidential signature on the Secure Fence Act (HR 6061) might be an attempt at a pocket veto. President Bush has never given very enthusiastic support to any border solution that didn't include a plan for normalization for illegal immigrants already inside the US. Mickey Kaus started counting the days since Congress passed the bill...

Border patrol officials will be required to evaluate the actions and training of their agents in the field as part of an amendment to the border fence bill passed by the House on Thursday. The amendment was attached to the bill this week by House members questioning internal law enforcement policies that prohibit Border Patrol agents from pursuing fleeing suspects in vehicles. The Section 5 amendment was in response to circumstances surrounding the conviction of two Texas Border Patrol agents who violated their department's pursuit policy when they chased a fleeing drug smuggler on Feb. 17, 2005. El Paso Border...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) today issued the following statement after passage of , Secure Fence Act of 2006. The bill passed 283-138-1 with 131 Democrats voting against the measure. "Every year, nearly one million illegal immigrants cross into America. This is a clear threat to our safety. Some of these people are coming for work, but countless others are drug dealers, gang members and some are even terrorists. That is why building this fence is common sense. And if we build the fence, it will be harder for them to...