Bush Sends Troops - But NOT to Guard the Border!
n a transparent
strategy to bolster his sagging support among conservative
voters in the months before the November elections, President
George W. Bush last month announced on national television
that he is sending units of the National Guard to the Mexican
border -- but not for guard duty.
The
troops will not be patrolling the border or performing any
border security duties. Instead they will provide only "logistical"
and administrative support to the Border Patrol behind the
scenes. And their functions will be only temporary - until
after the election.
The
scope of the deployment of no more than 6,000 troops is
so limited that many experts wonder if the effect will really
benefit border protection.
"When
you realize how manpower-intensive patrolling the border
really is, you realize this is a stop-gap," said Andrew
Krepinevich, a defense analyst at the Center for Strategic
and Budgetary Assessments in Washington.
Meeting
the insistence of Mexican President Vicente Fox that the
border not be "militarized," Bush made it clear
that the Guard units will not perform any law enforcement
functions. The Mexican foreign ministry issued a statement
saying it "has received assurances that the announced
measures do not imply a militarization of the border."
The troops will be ordered not to participate in border
security directly, and to refrain from any activities that
will physically secure the border, such as patrolling, arresting,
detaining, or even transporting illegal aliens. In other
words, the National Guard will not be used to guard the
nation. Instead, they will be used for intelligence analysis
and construction projects.
The
Christian Science Monitor reported that in many cases, some
soldiers' tours of duty on the border will last only two
weeks - fulfilling their annual requirement for two weeks
of training.
President Bush twice said in his televised address that
the security needs along the border are "urgent."
Five years have elapsed since Muslim terrorists immigrated
to the U.S. to carry out the attacks on 9-11, and millions
of illegals and criminal smugglers have been crossing the
border for decades - yet only last month did the president
notice that the border needs to be secured.
"If
it's such an urgent security need," said Christine
Wormuth of the Center for Strategic and International Studies
in Washington, "why are we just realizing it now?"
The
reason is the upcoming House and Senate elections.
"They're
worried about conservative voters, especially middle-aged
white males, not being motivated to back Republicans,"
a Republican political consultant told Middle American News.
He asked not to be identified because he still works for
Republican candidates. "The party leadership has been
doing this at least since Richard Nixon," he said.
"Just before the election, you give conservative voters
some 'red meat,' or big symbols. You don't have to deliver
on policy. That's been the Republican game plan for every
election."
Rep.
Tom Tancredo, R-CO, leader of House immigration reformers
and opponent of the president's amnesty scheme, said the
president's announcement might not be much help in securing
the border.
"A
few weeks ago, the administration announced a crackdown
on illegal employees, arresting more than 1,100 nationwide.
But by the next morning, more than half of those arrested
were released. Public relations in lieu of enforcement won't
fly with the American people," he said.
