Politicos pan border fence plan by Hunter By KIMBERLY WETZEL, Special to this newspaper
Thursday, November 10, 2005 3:22 PM PST
WASHINGTON (MNS) A former Imperial Valley congressman wants to build a 2,000-mile fence along the entire span of the U.S.-Mexico border, but many Southern California and Imperial Valley residents aren’t thrilled by the idea.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon, announced last week that he is introducing an immigration reform bill that would, among other things, call for a security fence to span from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. The bill also would call for 25 additional ports of entry.
The legislation, like other bills on immigration reform introduced in Congress, has stipulations to improve internal enforcement. But so far it’s the fence portion of the law that’s being met with considerable animosity, particularly in Southern California, where critics argue that with a price tag of about $2.4 billion, it would be too costly to build, too costly to maintain and wouldn’t deter illegal aliens from finding new ways to cross the border.
“If they put a wall all along the southern border, all it’s going to do is push the smugglers to use ways that are available to them already and it’s going to make it worse,” said Chris Bauder of the National Border Patrol Council’s San Diego chapter.
Many Imperial Valley residents agree.
Ricardo Ortega, executive director of the Neighborhood House in Calexico, said a fence won’t solve immigration problems in the U.S. and isn’t a good way to spend taxpayers’ money.
“I sincerely believe that that money could be spent a little more wisely,” he said.
Hildy Carrillo-Rivera, executive director of the Calexico Chamber of Commerce, said Calexico-area business owners are hesitant to say whether they would support such a fence because they don’t want to offend business relationships in the Imperial Valley and nearby Mexicali. She added she is opposed to the idea and doubts it would deter those determined to cross the border.
“They’re going to cross that fence anyway,” Carrillo-Rivera said. “As long as there are very poor people who are very hungry and want to survive on the other side, then this is going to continue happening. Instead of building a big fence, why don’t we spend money for more border protection?”
Andy Ramirez, chairman of the Southern California-based Friends of the Border Patrol, said he thinks the fence is a great idea. The bill is a thorough immigration reform approach, he said, and keeps illegal aliens out while dealing with the ones already inside the country.
“Friends of the Border Patrol fully support Hunter,” Ramirez said. “It’s a great step in the right direction. Unlike all the other bills, this one actually does something. It’s the whole enchilada; it’s not just the tortilla and sauce.”
The bill also would mandate verification of worker eligibility, punish employers who hire illegal aliens, hire thousands of new border patrol agents, increase penalties for forging immigration and identity documents and is aimed at doing a better job of tracking aliens who cross borders.
Myriam Escorsia, pastor at the United Methodist Church in Calexico, said she thinks the fence is a bad idea because it destroys hope for those seeking a better life without the means for doing it legally.
“We have the right to look for better conditions,” Escorsia said.
Joe Kasper, a spokesman for Hunter, said in the wake of Sept. 11, the fence is more important than ever in protecting the country. He added securing the borders with a fence would free money normally used for internal enforcement. As an example, he said, if there were fewer illegal immigrants, less money would be spent on illegal alien investigations, education and health-care services. He cited an April 2005 Government Accountability Office report that found 27 percent of federal penitentiary inmates are illegal aliens.
“It all adds up,” Kasper said. “We need to take the action to ensure our borders are safe and secure. We need to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.”
Kevin Miller, supervisory patrol agent for El Centro’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection office, declined to speculate on whether the fence would help or hinder agents’ abilities to do their jobs or whether it would free up money spent on other things relating to immigration. Calls to the national U.S. Customs and Border Protection office weren’t returned.
Kasper said it’s too soon to estimate how much it would cost annually to maintain the fence if it were built, how much building the extra ports would cost or from where the money would come.
It remains to be seen whether the legislation will gain support. Kasper said the bill, though yet to be formally introduced, already has more than 20 cosponsors and he expects more. The bill likely will be ready for introduction at the end of this week or early next week.
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