Tancredo Wants Troops Now Along U.S. Borders

June 19, 2002
By Bill McAllister and Michael Riley

WASHINGTON - Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., launched a public campaign Tuesday for the immediate deployment of troops to patrol the borders with Canada and Mexico.

In a news conference outside the Capitol, the two-term lawmaker led his Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus in urging President Bush to place thousands of active-duty soldiers or National Guard troops on the Canadian and Mexican borders to choke off the flow of illegal immigrants.

Tancredo conceded he had no idea what the deployment would cost or how many troops would be needed. He seconded a suggestion by Bill King, a retired Border Patrol chief agent, that it might take as many as 20,000 troops to secure the Mexican border.

"It sounds good to me," Tancredo said. "That may be a drop in the bucket."

Congress has approved funding to put 10,000 more agents on the northern and southern borders by September 2003.

The White House, however, rejected Tancredo's call for more troops.

"Immediately after Sept. 11, troops were located on the border on a temporary basis until federal officials could be trained to provide reinforcement and additional support," said spokesman Scott Stanzel. "At this point we don't see a need for troops to be stationed at the borders."

Tancredo is an outspoken critic of Bush's efforts to liberalize immigration, and a poll released this week suggests that the congressman's view may be in line with the majority of Americans.

The poll of 1,015 likely voters by Zogby International found that 68 percent of respondents believe the government should deploy troops on the borders temporarily to curb illegal immigration. Fifty-eight percent agreed that the U.S. should admit fewer immigrants each year.

Bush's Republican allies in Congress called Tancredo's plan too costly and unlikely to effectively seal the borders.

"We need to be aware to threats to our security, but the answer is not closing our borders at a cost that would divert huge resources from what the real need is," said Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah.

Canadian and Mexican officials said they already were working hard with the United States to improve border security. Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge and Canadian Deputy Prime Minister John Manley are working on a "smart border" plan so legitimate travelers can move back and forth "while increasing the security of our border through cooperation and intelligence-sharing," said Pamela Chappell, a spokeswoman for the Canadian Embassy.

"Having military on the border will not move us toward that goal," she said.

BORDER PATROL POLL

Should we put armed troops at the borders? Total Votes = 2295

Absolutely. We are leaving gaps for terrorists. (1726) 75%

Yes, it's probably good extra protection. (77)) 3%

Maybe. Depends on where and how they're used. (59) 3%

No, Tancredo is nuts and prejudiced, period. (406) 18%

Undecided. Need more information. (14) 1%

No opinion whatsoever. (3) 0%

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