Nat'l Guard not expected to patrol border

[Eugene]

Monday, May 15, 2006 · Last updated 1:10 p.m. PT

Nat'l Guard not expected to patrol border

By ROBERT BURNS
AP MILITARY WRITER

WASHINGTON -- National Guard troops tapped for duty on the border with Mexico
will not chase down illegal immigrants but instead will play behind-the-scenes
roles in support of border guards, officials said Monday.

Among the tasks they are likely to perform over the coming year: training federal
Border Patrol guards, building barriers near the border, improving roadways, providing
support for aerial and ground surveillance, analyzing and sharing intelligence, and
providing communications systems and transportation, the officials said.

The intent is to deepen the Guard's existing support for law enforcement agencies -
but only temporarily.

Several thousand Guard troops are likely to be called on to help, but it was not clear
whether they would come only from the four border states - California, Arizona, New Mexico
and Texas - or whether those states' governors would use Emergency Management Assistance
Compacts to get Guard troops from other states.

<snip>

Full article: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1152AP_Immigration_Military.html

[displacedtexan]

1. That story was updated at 1:10PM PT. Hm.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Monday, May 15, 2006 · Last updated 1:10 p.m. PT

Nat'l Guard not expected to patrol border


Looks like someone flinched.

[The_Casual_Observer]

2. This report leads me to the conclusion that they don't have

the slightest idea about what they ought to do about illegal boarder crossings. They are wildly casting about all kinds of threats and bullshit in order to make it look like there 1. is a problem & 2. they have an answer to this problem.

[central scrutinizer]

3. Could get pretty messy during hurricane season

what with the Guard spread paper-thin to cover Iraq and the US border.

[Robb]

12. Don't forget wildfire season, too. nt

[Jacobin]

4. Ha.

Smirky's widdle speech already cratered.

They never cease to amaze. Base further alienated.

[Spazito]

5. Oh my, does this qualify as

blink, blink, blink? Or flippity-flop, flippity-flop? Damn, it is so hard to tell which one it is, roflmao!

[jaxx]

6. What will the NG construct? The freakin wall?

National Guard soldiers would not perform law enforcement duties, but would help in such areas as construction, surveillance and transportation, Snow said.

Did Snow just snow us for the first time?

[Rose Siding]

7. "Support for...ground surveillance" and "transportation" but no patrol

Huh?

[havocmom]

10. Translation: Get their photos taken looking busy on the border

then photos will be used by GOP candidates (especially in Southwest) as campaign tools.

Once again, our men and women in uniforms as props for photo ops.

Any bets on which politicians show up to get pictures taken holding the borders with the Guard? ;)

[Journeyman]

8. So most of these duties could be functions of the Corp of Engineers. . .

and there would be no change in posse comitatus or need to add further strain to the already overburdened Guard. And the Corps of Engineers needs the work, especially since we stopped building dams like crazy.

So what, exactly, will ShrubCo accomplish with this idiotic plan, other than anger and alienate large groups of people?

Way to go, George! Stay the course -- love the direction of those approval numbers.

[Doctor Venmkan]

9. What'd I tell you?

I could see that this whole thing was going to be nothing more than a farce to try and calm the conservative base who feel betrayed by Dubya for his pro-business, anti-border control stance.

It's kind of sad and kind of funny that this administration can't even do said FARCE right! :dunce:

[Vidar]

11. "Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my closeup."

[alfredo]

13. bush said he is add 6,000 guards. That is still 3,000

short of where it was before he cut back on border guards.

[0007]

14. .....and making I.D. cards for the illegal immigrants.