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Bush sending Guard to border

The president seeks middle ground in enforcing laws while also welcoming immigrants, including many of those here illegally.

By ANITA KUMAR
Published May 16, 2006

	It's Your Times: What do you think of Bush's plans?

WASHINGTON - President Bush said Monday that he will send an additional 12,000 National Guard troops and Border Patrol agents to the Mexican border as part of a $1.9-billion plan to control the flood of illegal immigrants that slip into the United States every year.

Bush also renewed his longtime support for a comprehensive plan that would allow many of the 12-million illegal immigrants in the United States to stay as guest workers and pursue citizenship.

The president spoke in a prime time TV address designed to win over conservatives clamoring for stronger enforcement as well as moderates who favor a broader plan that includes citizenship and guest worker programs.

"We are a nation of laws, and we must enforce our laws. We are also a nation of immigrants, and we must uphold that tradition, which has strengthened our country in so many ways," Bush said. "These are not contradictory goals - America can be a lawful society and a welcoming society at the same time.

"We will fix the problems created by illegal immigration, and we will deliver a system that is secure, orderly and fair," he said.

The 17-minute speech, an attempt to break the political impasse on Capitol Hill, came as Congress resumed debate on what could be the most sweeping immigration reform in two decades. Bush will make his case again Thursday in a visit to the border in Yuma, Ariz.

It's a delicate balancing act for politicians in an election year, especially for Republicans who are divided between those who consider immigrants a vital part of the work force and those who see them as dangerous lawbreakers.

Reaction to the speech was mostly predictable, with many Republican leaders, including House Speaker Dennis Hastert and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, praising Bush for sending National Guard troops to the border.

"The president ... laid out his support for comprehensive reform stressing that America can be a lawful society and a welcoming society at the same time," said Sen. Mel Martinez, a Cuban immigrant and Florida Republican who helped write the Senate bill. "We need to realize that there are two parts to this problem: securing our border and reforming our broken immigration system.

Others, including Democrats and conservatives who favor enforcement and oppose what they call amnesty and guest worker programs, said the president did not go far enough.

"A few steps, including calling out the National Guard, significant though they may be, will not change the pervasive illegality of our current immigration system to one that works," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican who has been vocal on the issue. "And the American people know it."

Bush, a former governor of Texas, has talked about immigration reform for years but lately has been pressed by many for specific proposals. On Monday, he outlined several, in his first Oval Office address on a domestic priority.

The president will send 6,000 more Border Patrol agents along the 2,000-mile border with Mexico by 2008, and 6,000 National Guardsmen in the next year, with a scaling back in the second year. Deployments are expected to begin early next month.

"For decades, the United States has not been in complete control of its borders," Bush said. "As a result, many who want to work in our economy have been able to sneak across our border, and millions have stayed."

Mexican President Vicente Fox called Bush on Sunday to express concern about the possibility of a "militarized" border between the two nations.

"The United States is not going to militarize the southern border," Bush said. "Mexico is our neighbor and our friend. We will continue to work cooperatively to improve security on both sides of the border ... to confront common problems like drug trafficking and crime ... and to reduce illegal immigration."

Governors in Southwest states that border Mexico will ask for the extra National Guard troops, though they would be paid for by the federal government as part of the $1.9-billion package.

The troops will not be involved in law enforcement but would take support jobs including surveillance and intelligence currently held by federal agents, freeing them for front-line duty, according to White House officials. The troops would only be temporary to support the Border Patrol, which will remain in the lead.

Some lawmakers worried that sending troops to the border will overextend forces that are fighting in Iraq.

"The deployment of national guard troops to our southern border raises many red flags, and even some Republicans ... have expressed serious concerns," said Rep. Steny Hoyer, the House Democratic whip. "This administration is simply stretching our military too thin."

Other proposals include: thousands of new beds in detention facilities; more resources for state and local authorities; construction of high-tech fences in urban corridors and patrol roads and barriers in rural areas; better technology that includes motion sensors, infrared cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles to prevent illegal crossings; and identification cards for every legal foreign worker to help hold employers accountable for their workforce.

"President Bush neglected our borders for over five years ... " said Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, a Democrat. "The president's belated effort will serve as a stopgap."

The House already passed a tough bill that focuses on border security and deporting illegal immigrants in December. The Senate resumed debate Monday on a more lenient bill that would allow many illegal immigrants a chance to stay and new immigrants to become guest workers.

Though Bush has not said that he supports the Senate version, he does support many of its proposals including the guest worker program and allowing some illegal immigrants to work toward citizenship.

But he stressed that if they are to become citizens, immigrants need to learn English and assimilate into American culture.

"It is neither wise nor realistic to round up millions of people, many with deep roots in the United States and send them across the border," he said. "There is a rational middle ground between granting an automatic path to citizenship for every illegal immigrant and a program of mass deportation."

The Senate expects to pass a bill by Memorial Day.

The two chambers would hash out their differences over the summer.

"An immigration reform bill needs to be comprehensive," the president said, "because all elements of this problem must be addressed together - or none of them will be solved at all."

The Guard, by the numbers

444,000

People serving part time in the National Guard - 337,000 of them in the Army National Guard; the remainder are in the Air National Guard

22,000

Guard members on duty in Iraq

5,000

Guard members on duty in Afghanistan

50 percent

Percentage of Army combat brigades in Iraq pulled from the National Guard in 2005

50,000

National Guard troops used to help after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year

Sources: Knight-Ridder, AP

[Last modified May 16, 2006, 06:09:10]