Arizona congresswoman says this is a good first step in bringing long-overdue resources to the border
WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords today welcomed the announcement that National Guard troops assigned to the Arizona border will begin arriving in less than two weeks, but said the deployment took far too long and more resources still are needed.
Giffords applauded plans announced by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano to dispatch hundreds of additional Border Patrol agents, customs officers, ICE agents and surveillance technology to Arizona.
“These additional assets are badly needed in Arizona and I am pleased they soon will be arriving,” said Giffords. “This is an important step in securing our border. However, it has been four long months since Rob Krentz was murdered on his ranch near the border. It should not have taken us this long to take this action to protect Arizona residents.”
Napolitano announced today that the troops would start arriving in Arizona Aug. 1, coinciding with the reassignment of additional Border Patrol agents and other resources. The announcement did not specify where in Arizona the National Guard troops would be deployed or when all 524 would be in place.
“It should not have taken this long to have the troops dispatched to the border area. And while I am pleased to see troops soon will be arriving, it is not enough to secure Arizona’s 370-mile border with Mexico,” said Giffords. “My hope is that a substantial number of the troops sent to Arizona will be in the rural area of Southeastern Arizona. It was in that area that Rob Krentz was murdered and where ranchers have seen a dramatic increase in the number of people crossing their land smuggling drugs and humans.”
Krentz was working on land his family had ranched for more than a century when was killed on March 27. Immediately afterwards, Giffords urged President Obama to send National Guard troops to Southern Arizona to ensure the safety of rural residents.
The congresswoman announced in May that President Obama had finally agreed to her request by deploying 1,200 National Guard troops to the nation’s southern border. Federal officials said 524 of those troops would be assigned to Arizona – more than in any other state.
DHS announced today that it will deploy more than 300 additional Border Patrol agents as well as field officers and operations managers to the Tucson Sector. More than 100 additional Immigrations and Customs Enforcement personnel will be sent to Arizona, including investigations agents, intelligence analysts and enforcement and removal officers.
“It is crucial for these additional agents to be stationed on the border, not 20 or 30 miles back from it,” said Giffords. “We must not cede any American territory to drug cartels and human smugglers. More Border Patrol agents in forward-operating bases and patrolling on horseback and all-terrain vehicles will make it clear that the federal government intends to stop smuggling at the border.”
Giffords also welcomed Napolitano’s announcement that additional technology assets will be sent to the Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector. That will include six mobile surveillance systems, 36 thermal imaging binocular units and three trucks equipped with detection scopes. In addition, six observation and utility aircraft will be sent to the Tucson Sector, improving night detection capability and enhancing air mobility.
“This is precisely the kind of technological equipment that I have been seeking for Arizona,” Giffords said. “These systems will greatly increase the Border Patrol’s ability to detect illegal activities along the border.”
However, Giffords said she remains concerned that residents of rural Southeastern Arizona still are plagued with unreliable cell-phone service. Poor reception was cited as a factor in delaying the search for Krentz after he was reported missing.
Giffords experienced the problems herself. When traveling to the community meeting with ranchers days after Krentz was killed, Napolitano tried to contact Giffords by cell phone but the call wouldn’t go through. The congresswoman has several times called on Verizon Wireless and AT&T to improve their service in the area, possibly by installing temporary towers until a permanent fix is in place.
Napolitano today also said ICE will open a new office in Ajo, establish a Border Enforcement Security Task Force Jump Team in Douglas and deploy additional special agents at intelligence offices in Mexico.
As part of the stepped-up enforcement efforts, the Justice Department will increase the prosecution of criminal aliens apprehended for illegally re-entering the United States after prior removal. Since this program began, a record number of illegal re-entry cases presented to the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Arizona have been accepted for prosecution.