Yesterday, the U.S. Senate approved $600 million in funding for additional security measures along the border with Mexico, including new technology, personnel, and even a couple of the unmanned predator drones pictured at right (feel safer yet?). I blogged about the proposal yesterday in “Democrats Bow to Republican Border Security Lies, Spend $600 Million On Non-Solutions.”
This latest development represents not a reasoned response to some massive crime increase on our Southern border (thank goodness) but election year politics at their worst. Senate Democrats and Republicans both know that the only route to true border security is real, comprehensive immigration reform.
According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice:
Congress has now delivered on the latest request for extra funds and personnel that the ‘border security first’ crowd, such as Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ), have been advocating for. Will these former champions of comprehensive immigration reform keep moving the security goalposts and sticking with their ‘border first’ talking points? Or will they recognize that Republican primaries will soon be over and the time is right to deliver an actual, lasting solution to fix the broken immigration system?
Here’s hoping that’s the case. If not, Senate Democrats have handed certain Arizona Republicans just what they were looking for: validation for their absurd claims about crime and illegal immigration to justify blocking real, comprehensive immigration reform.
As Sam Seder argues, that’s BS (WARNING- language may not be suitable for work):
(h/t John Aravosis, AMERICABlog).
Edward Alden, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, has argued that “it’s time for lawmakers to reconsider what they’d like to see happening in the region.” According to Alden:
“Border security has become the most overused, and least understood, concept in the struggle over what to do about our broken immigration system,” he said. “While an election year may not be the best time, the United States finally needs an honest debate over what it means to secure the country’s borders.”
