The Department of Homeland Security is doubling the number of law enforcement working along the Southwest border and could request border state governors to send National Guardsmen to help curtail spillover violence from Mexico.
DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano said Tuesday the goal of increased U.S. efforts along the border is twofold: to provide assistance to Mexico to break up the large cartels conducting what is essentially a drug war in Mexico and to guard against an increase in violence against the U.S. as a result of this war.
Mexico's drug violence has killed thousands in the past two years as gangs battle each other for territory and fight off a government crackdown.
The goal is to help the government of Mexico break up "huge cartels which are funneling tonnage quantities of illegal drugs into our country on a regular basis and are conducting this war of violence in Mexico that has resulted into 6,000 homicides, over 550 of which were assassinations on law enforcement and public office personnel," Napolitano said
The recent moves are part of a $700 million plan for securing the southern border with Mexico. The plan includes "redeploying" existing personnel from immigration enforcement, work site enforcement and possibly even customs enforcement to help prevent spillover violence.
President Obama is concerned about the increased level of violence, particularly in Ciudad Juarez and Tijuana, and the impact that it is having on the communities on both sides of the border, U.S. Deputy Attorney General David Ogden.
"He believes that the United States must continue to monitor the situation and guard against spillover into the United States. And the president is firmly committed to ensuring our borders are secure and we are doing all we can to reduce illegal flows in both direction across the border," Ogden said.
Working with the Department of Justice, DHS has announced eight components to fighting back against violence along the border, including doubling DHS presence in certain areas along the border and beefing up the violent crimes unit from 50 to 100 agents; tripling intelligence analysts along the border, likely centered in El Paso, Texas; and increasing Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel at the attache office in Mexico from 24 to 36 officials. - FOX News Story
How is that when Bush pushed to build a fence to shut down the border that was oh so bad? Now that things are getting worse we are ready to militarize the darn thing. We should have been doing more all along.
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