Senate drives stake through immigration

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS, Associated Press Writer 41 minutes ago

President Bush's immigration plan to legalize as many as 12 million unlawful immigrants while fortifying the border collapsed in the Senate on Thursday, crushing both parties' hopes of addressing the volatile issue before the 2008 elections.

The Senate vote that drove a stake through the delicate compromise was a stinging setback for Bush, who had made reshaping immigration laws a central element of his domestic agenda. It could carry heavy political consequences for Republicans and Democrats, many of whom were eager to show they could act on a complex issue that has sparked deep public concern.

"Legal immigration is one of the top concerns of the American people and Congress' failure to act on it is a disappointment," a grim-faced Bush said after an appearance in Newport, R.I. "A lot of us worked hard to see if we couldn't find common ground. It didn't work."

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., his party's lead negotiator on the bill, called the defeat "enormously disappointing for Congress and for the country." But, he added: "We will be back. This issue is not going away."

Senate Blocks Immigration Bill

Jun 28, 3:32 PM (ET)

By CHARLES BABINGTON

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate drove a stake Thursday through President Bush's plan to legalize millions of unlawful immigrants, likely postponing major action on immigration until after the 2008 elections.

After the stinging political setback, Bush sounded resigned to defeat.

"Legal immigration is one of the top concerns of the American people, and Congress' failure to act on it is a disappointment," he said after an appearance in Newport, R.I. "A lot of us worked hard to see if we couldn't find common ground. It didn't work."

The bill's Senate supporters fell 14 votes short of the 60 needed to limit debate and clear the way for final passage of the legislation, which critics assailed as offering amnesty to illegal immigrants. The vote was 46 to 53 in favor of limiting the debate.

CBP Officers at Bridge of Americas Cargo Facility Seize 3,031-Pound Drug Load Thursday

Monday, June 25, 2007

El Paso, Texas - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Bridge of the Americas commercial cargo facility seized 3,031 pounds of marijuana Thursday afternoon.

It was the second large drug seizure made at the cargo lot this week. On Monday, CBP officers seized 1,806 pounds of marijuana. Total drugs seized this week by CBP officers working at all ports of entry in El Paso, West Texas and New Mexico was 6,777 pounds of marijuana in 23 drug seizures this week.

The large Thursday seizure occurred just before 5 p.m. when a tractor-trailer entered the cargo facility from Mexico. CBP officers directed the vehicle to the X-ray unit for an examination. CBP officers scanned the truck and noticed a dense area in the front of the empty trailer. CBP drug sniffing dog “Freedom” searched the trailer and alerted to the front wall. CBP officers removed a false front wall from the trailer and removed 656 marijuana-filled bundles from a hidden compartment. The weight of the marijuana was 3,031 pounds. ICE special agents arrested the driver, a 34-year-old Mexican male from Juarez, in connection with the failed smuggling attempt.

CBP Officers Seize Half Ton of Marijuana At San Luis, Ariz.; Largest Bust at Porty

Monday, June 25, 2007

San Luis, Ariz. - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the San Luis, Ariz. port of entry stopped a major narcotics smuggling attempt yesterday, seizing more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana and arresting both a U.S. citizen and a Mexican citizen in the process.

CBP officers screening travelers and vehicles coming into the United States through the San Luis port of entry as part of their anti-terrorism operations Sunday afternoon encountered two men bringing a 2001 Ford F-350 that was pulling an enclosed trailer with an ATV inside.

When talking with the driver, a 20-year-old man from Thermal, Calif., and his passenger, a 22-year-old man from Mecca, Calif., a CBP officer received conflicting answers to routine questions and decided a more intensive inspection of both the men and the vehicle was warranted.

While a CBP officer questioned the men and others began inspecting the vehicle, another officer screened the vehicle and trailer with a narcotics detector dog, who alerted to the odor of narcotics. Both men were detained while the vehicle and trailer were screened using a vehicle X-ray system,

which showed anomalies in the front of the trailer. CBP officers then opened a compartment built into the front of the trailer, finding 190 packages of marijuana hidden inside.

Pivotal Vote Looms on Immigration

Jun 26, 9:57 AM (ET)

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush encouraged the Senate on Tuesday to put aside bitter differences and pass a bill that would legalize millions of illegal immigrants.

Bush appeared optimistic about winning a test vote Tuesday and the Senate's passage of the bill by week's end.

"We'll be moving our attention to the House after the Senate passes this comprehensive piece of legislation," Bush told business leaders and representatives of religious, Hispanic and agricultural communities. "I think this is an historic opportunity for Congress to act."

Joel Kaplan, Bush's deputy chief of staff, also was optimistic. "Our intelligence suggests that there will be the votes there," he said.

Conservative critics who paint the measure as amnesty for lawbreakers, however, said their efforts to stop the legislation were gaining momentum. Bush's team is predicting victory Tuesday on the effort to allow the bill - among the president's top domestic priorities - to go forward.

Critics warn Mexico City over prostitution proposal

By Hugh Collins
REUTERS

MEXICO CITY – A proposal to legalize prostitution in Mexico City risks making women more vulnerable to human traffickers forcing them onto the street as sex slaves, a U.S. academic said Friday.

At a conference on human trafficking, Rhode Island University professor of Women's Studies Donna Hughes said a plan by Mexico City's left-wing government to make prostitution legal in the capital could mean more women and children coerced into being sex workers.

Networks of human traffickers prey on homeless women and children, as well as illegal immigrants, often offering them promises of jobs in Mexico City or the United States but instead forcing them into prostitution.

Prostitution is illegal in Mexico but is widely tolerated everywhere from grimy street corners to swanky brothels. Police can easily be bribed to turn a blind eye to sex workers.

Legalizing it is the latest liberal idea by the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) – which runs the capital's government and has a majority in the city assembly – since it legalized gay civil unions and abortion earlier this year.

For more on prostitution in Mexico, read here and here . -mm

Former Mexican governor released, re-arrested for extradition to U.S. on drug charges

By Olga R. Rodriguez
ASSOCIATED PRESS

MEXICO CITY – A former Mexican governor freed after six years behind bars was immediately re-arrested Thursday on a U.S. extradition request in which he is accused of helping smuggle 200 tons of cocaine into the United States, federal prosecutors said.

It was the latest chapter in the saga of Mario Villanueva, the former governor of the Caribbean state of Quintana Roo. Villanueva went into hiding in 1999 two weeks before the end of his six-year term and was hunted for two years until he was captured, sporting a beard and ponytail, in Cancun, the state's largest city.

A Mexican judge on Tuesday ordered Villanueva's release after he served six years on charges he laundered alleged drug money through Swiss banks while serving as governor. Villanueva was cleared of drug trafficking and organized crime charges.

Semitrailer was hauling 70 illegally

By Kristina Davis

UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

June 24, 2007

A truck driver was arrested Friday after U.S. Border Patrol agents discovered he'd hauled 70 undocumented migrants across the border in a semitrailer specially designed for human smuggling, authorities said.

The trailer was equipped with a large freezer chest, cool soda and bottled water, fans and a trapdoor in the floor to discreetly load and unload drugs or people, the Border Patrol said.

“This is one of the most sophisticated I've seen,” Border Patrol agent Gabriel Guerrero said. “It was obviously equipped for a long trip.”

Mexico forces top police to prove trustworthiness or lose their jobs

By Julie Watson
ASSOCIATED PRESS
9:52 a.m. June 25, 2007

MEXICO CITY – Mexico has temporarily removed all of its top federal police from their jobs and is forcing them to prove they will not be corrupted in the nationwide fight against drug trafficking, the country's public safety secretary announced Monday.

While authorities often have purged police forces to try to eliminate the nagging problem of corrupt officers, this is one of the most extreme measures taken on a nationwide level to guarantee Mexico's high-ranking officers are honest.

It comes as the government seeks aid from the United States for its crackdown on drug gangs, a battle led by federal police and soldiers. Washington has long complained about Mexico's endemic corruption problem hindering anti-smuggling efforts.

Public Safety Secretary Genaro Garcia Luna said the review had nothing to with those discussions and was in response to Mexicans who are tired of crime and corruption. In recent years, scores of federal police have been caught working for the drug cartels, tainting what was once considered the last trustworthy group of officers.

See my comments here. -mm

Chavez Warns of Resistance War With U.S.

Jun 25, 1:47 AM (ET)

By CHRISTOPHER TOOTHAKER

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - President Hugo Chavez urged soldiers on Sunday to prepare for a guerrilla-style war against the United States, saying that Washington is using psychological and economic warfare as part of an unconventional campaign aimed at derailing his government.

Dressed in olive green fatigues and a red beret, Chavez spoke inside Tiuna Fort - Venezuela's military nerve-center - before hundreds of uniformed soldiers standing alongside armored vehicles and tanks decorated with banners reading: "Fatherland, Socialism, or Death! We will triumph!"

"We must continue developing the resistance war, that's the anti-imperialist weapon. We must think and prepare for the resistance war everyday," said Chavez, who has repeatedly warned that American soldiers could invade Venezuela to seize control of the South American nation's immense oil reserves.

U.S. officials reject claims that Washington is considering a military attack. But the U.S. government has expressed concern over what it perceives as a significant arms build-up here.

Full access for Mexican trucks hits rough road

June 25, 2007

By Sean Lengell - THE WASHINGTON TIMES

A Bush administration plan to proceed with a pilot program to give Mexican truckers full access of U.S. roads has caused a bipartisan uproar on Capitol Hill.

"The cross-border trucking program is bad for America," said Rep. Duncan Hunter, California Republican and presidential candidate. "It appears, under the current program, that commercial interests are being pushed ahead of the safety and security interests of the American people."

The Teamsters union and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, a trade association representing the independent truck owner-operators and professional drivers, also oppose the program, saying Mexican trucking companies have poor safety figures, do not keep reliable records on accidents, and do not dependably test drivers for drugs and alcohol.

"It's apparent the Bush administration is thumbing its nose at the will of the American people and Congress," said Todd Spencer, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.

Mexican-registered trucks are allowed to make deliveries and pickups in the U.S. only within special commercial zones along the U.S.-Mexican border that extend up to about 70 miles inside U.S. territory. But several months ago, President Bush announced plans for a Department of Transportation test program to begin this summer that would permit 100 Mexican-based trucking companies to travel anywhere in the U.S.

As Immigrant Workers Increased, Native Employment Declined in Georgia

Center for Immigrant Studies

Employment Down Among Natives In Georgia
Download a pdf

Contact: Steven Camarota
sac@cis.org
202-466-8185

WASHINGTON (June 20, 2007) — Some businesses in Georgia argue that they need large numbers of immigrants because there are not enough native-born Americans to fill jobs that require relatively little education. However, state employment data show that as the number of less-educated immigrant workers has grown dramatically, the share of less-educated natives holding a job in Georgia has declined significantly.

• Between 2000 and 2006 the share of less-educated native-born adults (ages 18 to 64) in Georgia holding a job declined from 71 percent to 66 percent. (Less-educated is defined as having no education beyond high school.)
• Had employment rates for natives been the same in 2006 as they were in 2000, then 186,000 more less-educated native-born adults and teenagers would have been working. The number of less-educated immigrants holding a job increased by 218,000.
• Less-educated blacks in Georgia have seen a somewhat larger decline in employment, from 66 percent holding a job in 2000 to just 60 percent in 2006.
• There are nearly 800,000 less-educated native-born adults in Georgia not working. There are likely between 250,000 and 350,000 less-educated illegal aliens holding jobs in the state.
• Wages and salary for less-educated adults in Georgia have stagnated. Over the entire six-year time period of the study, real annual wages for less-educated adults grew by just 1 percent. If there was a labor shortage, wages should be rising fast.
• Native-born teenagers (15 to 17 years of age) have also seen a dramatic decline in employment. Between 2000 and 2006 the share of native-born teenagers holding a job declined from 22 percent to 11 percent in the state.
• There are about 300,000 native-born teenagers not working in Georgia.
• Immigrants (legal and illegal) increased their share of all less-educated workers in Georgia, from 7 percent in 2000 to 19 percent by 2006. Other research indicates that at least half of this growth was from illegal immigrants.

Mexican Government Vs. Those “Absurd” American Gun Rights

Nature abhors a vacuum. When the U.S. government ceased to care about controlling the U.S.-Mexican border, the region descended into anarchy.

We now have illegal aliens and drugs moving north and Mexican drug smugglers even setting up listening and observation posts north of the border. There is an intrinsic relation between drug and alien smuggling, with drug smugglers using illegal aliens, sometimes as drug runners, sometimes as decoys.

But open borders work both ways. Recently, the Mexican government has been getting upset because of south-bound smuggling: of guns. Its preferred solution: the U.S. should abolish the right to keep and bear arms.

Don’t laugh—if the Bush-backed drive to marry Mexico prevails, gun control will happen.

In Mexico, the drug cartel wars go on and on. The last report I saw put it at 1263 slain in drug killings so far in calendar year 2007.

President Calderon, inaugurated in December, has made smashing the cartels one of his main priorities. Calderon has shown a lot of resolve and determination, in contrast to the passive response of Vicente Fox at the end of his presidential term. The Mexican public seems to support Calderon. A poll taken in May indicated a more optimistic Mexican public than the same poll taken 10 months earlier (July of 2006), despite the fact that killings have increased since then. In addition, 67% of Mexicans polled agreed that national security was at risk.

I have long described Mexican society as "a spiderweb of bureaucracy overlaying an ocean of anarchy." Some of taken exception to this, others have been offended and still others have said they would pray for me to be healed of this terrible attitude. And yet, it is proven true every day from the corruption of public officials and law enforcement to the constantly changing rules and regulations that are arbitrarily enforced. It is a fact of life on the border! -mm

Illegal Immigrants Targeted By States

Impasse on Hill Spurs New Laws

By Darryl Fears
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 25, 2007; A01

Frustrated with Congress's inability to pass an immigration overhaul bill, state legislatures are considering or enacting a record number of strongly worded proposals targeting illegal immigrants.

By the time most legislatures adjourned in May, at least 1,100 immigration bills had been submitted by lawmakers, more than double last year's record total, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. This year's total is expected to grow as the issue continues to dominate debate in statehouses still in session.

These laws limit illegal immigrants' ability to obtain jobs, find housing, get driver's licenses and receive many government services. They also empower state law enforcement agencies to inquire into an immigrant's legal status and hold for deportation those deemed to be here illegally. The idea is to make life so difficult for illegal immigrants that they will leave the state -- if not the country.

Bush: Plan has permanent ban for illegals

Uses radio address to lobby for Senate's 'amnesty' idea

Posted: June 23, 2007 5:00 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

President Bush today offered the promise of a future permanent ban on illegal aliens in the United States – if the U.S. Senate moves forward with a compromise "comprehensive" immigration reform package that was killed earlier.

"Right now, our laws are ineffective and insufficient. For example, crossing the border illegally carries weak penalties. In addition, participation in illegal gangs is not enough to bar admission into our country," he said on his weekly radio address.

"And when we cannot get other countries to accept the return of their citizens who are dangerous criminals, in most cases our government can only detain these aliens for six months before releasing them into society," he said.

Senators Push for Support on Immigration

Jun 25, 3:31 AM (ET)

By JIM ABRAMS

WASHINGTON (AP) - Senators pushing a new immigration policy appealed Sunday to wavering supporters ahead of renewed debate on securing the borders and dealing with 12 million undocumented immigrants.

A fragile compromise was pulled from the Senate in early June, then resurrected after bipartisan negotiations with the White House. The bill awaits a crucial test vote this week. With several senators distancing themselves from the proposal, the outcome was too close to call.

"We'll see if between the two parties we have 60 votes" needed to keep the bill moving toward a final vote, said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.

The measure would tighten borders, require workplace verification and create a guest worker program. It also would lay out a way by which the estimated 12 million people illegally in the U.S. could gain legal status and work toward citizenship.

Mexican Illegals Breaking Mexican Law Too!

Is Mexico our partner in securing our border? Republican presidential candidate John McCain thinks so. Campaigning in Iowa, McCain assured his audience that Mexico’s President Calderon is going to help us secure the border. [McCain says Mexico's new president will help protect borders Associated Press, June 1, 2007]

It’s funny McCain would say that, for several reasons.

For one thing, the candidate hasn’t been too concerned in the past about illegal immigration.

And, if our own president doesn’t want to secure our border, why would the president of Mexico want to secure it?

Ironically, Mexico could help us secure our border—and dry up illegal immigration—simply by enforcing Mexican law.

You won’t hear this from Mexican officials. They will tell you that Mexicans are free to leave or enter the country and that, constitutionally, they can’t stop them.

Ah, how beautiful. Every Mexican is free as a bird, can go where he desires, uninhibited by those pesky artificial borders.

Right?

Not according to Mexican law.

Learning About Immigration Policy From Mexico

Almost everybody believes that the U.S.A. needs immigration reform. I’d like to propose that we study immigration systems in other countries, to see what we can learn from them.

It's arrogant to assume that we Americans have all the answers, and that no other country can do anything better than we can.

Some of the biggest critics of our immigration policy are Mexicans. So let's examine Mexico’s immigration policy and see what we can learn from it.

We might even decide that Mexico has some approaches to the issue that we could copy. Surely they wouldn’t object to that.

Would they?

How can we summarize Mexican immigration/nationality policies? Here’s how: Mexico has an immigration system tailored to fit the interests of Mexico.

And what’s wrong with that?

Border Patrol agent vindicated

Reinstated 6 years after felony conviction similar to Ramos, Compean
Posted: June 19, 2007 1:15 p.m. Eastern
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Six years after his felony conviction for striking an illegal alien who resisted arrest, Border Patrol Agent David Sipe has been vindicated by an administrative law ruling, reports WND columnist Jerome Corsi, who notes similarities to the current cases of the "Texas 3."

Sipe was convicted in 2001 of criminal felony charges for striking illegal alien coyote Jose Guevara on the back of his head.

Anna Love, an administrative judge with the Dallas Region of the Merit Systems Protection Board, ordered Sipe reinstated June 13 to his former Border Patrol position, with full back-salary to April 21, 2001, the date the Border Patrol removed him and suspended his pay.

U.S. sees no let-up in Mexico drug war killings

REUTERS

6:49 p.m. June 18, 2007

MEXICO CITY – The ferocious rate of killings in Mexico's drug war is unlikely to slow despite President Felipe Calderón's military assault on the cartels, a senior U.S. anti-drug official said Monday.

More than 1,000 people have died this year in a battle between the Mexican government, the Gulf Cartel and an alliance of traffickers from the northwestern state of Sinaloa.

The U.S. official said Calderón's dispatch of 25,000 troops across the country was putting pressure on the cartels but that the rivalry between the gangs was too great for them to stop killing each other.

“Would I anticipate less killings? Not necessarily,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “There is a significant level of retribution being passed from one group to the other.”

Revived illegals bill 'security nightmare'

AG's ex-chief immigration adviser says it makes life in U.S. easier for terrorists

Posted: June 20, 2007
1:00 p.m. Eastern
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The recasting of the Senate's immigration reform bill as national security legislation is a farce, contends a former chief adviser to the U.S. attorney general, arguing the plan offers alien terrorists easier ways to obtain legal status and carry out attacks on Americans.

"The top priority in this bill is extending amnesty as quickly and easily as possible to as many illegal aliens as possible," writes Kris W. Kobach, professor of law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation. "The cost of doing so is to jeopardize national security."

Bill co-sponsor Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., claims the legislation will compel all illegal aliens to come forward, and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez repeatedly has called it a "national security bill," declaring, "We are fixing a national security problem."

Too many single malts for Mr. Kennedy if he thinks any piece of paper is going to "compel all illegal aliens to come forward." -mm

New effort in Mexico is targeting cop bribery

Bite on tourists spurs some not to visit again

By Anna Cearley

UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

June 17, 2007

One November evening, California retiree Frank P. Smith and his wife were backing out of a parking spot near one of Puerto Nuevo's many lobster restaurants when a police officer stopped them.

Smith was being cited, he recalled, for several violations, including improper parking and an out-of-sight license plate. He suspected the charges, which the officer indicated would add up to a fine of $320, were trumped up.But the officer threatened to tow his car and camper, and refused to let Smith speak to his commander.

So Smith did what he figured was expected – though it wasn't solicited outright. He gave the officer $60 in cash.

Like many other tourists put on the spot, Smith never reported the incident south of Rosarito Beach. Instead, the travelers continued home to Morro Bay.

“I know it happens to others and they don't go back, and it's a shame,” said Smith, who said he's been traveling in Mexico for 20 years and will continue doing so despite the bad experience.

The police bribe – known as the mordida, or bite – remains a troubling problem throughout Mexico. It is difficult to address or document because few people pursue complaints against officers.

Mexican Soldiers Charged With Homicide

MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Nineteen Mexican soldiers have been charged with homicide in the killings of two women and three children whose vehicle failed to stop at an army checkpoint.

The Defense Department said in a news release Monday that three officers and 16 enlisted personnel would be tried by a military court. The soldiers are being held at a prison in the Pacific Coast city of Mazatlan, in Sinaloa state where the shooting took place.

The family was traveling to a funeral on June 1 when they were ordered to stop at the checkpoint near the village of La Joya. When they did not, the soldiers reportedly opened fire on the van.

The shooting is the latest case of suspected abuse by soldiers deployed by President Felipe Calderon in a national offensive against powerful drug cartels.

Alleged migrant smugglers arrested

By Louie Gilot / El Paso Times

Article Launched: 06/20/2007 12:00:00 AM MDT

The alleged mastermind of an El Paso migrant smuggling ring, his son and an alleged associate were arrested Monday after a two-year investigation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.

Ramon Felix, 46, also known as "Gerber," is suspected of being the head of the Ramon Felix criminal organization.

He and his 24-year-old son, Pablo Felix, were arrested at their East El Paso home in the 1200 block of Roswell Road.

The elder Felix allegedly hired commercial truck drivers to transport undocumented immigrants -- men, women and children -- in their sleeper cabs to U.S. cities such as Albuquerque and Dallas.

ICE officials said the ring smuggled hundreds of migrants through El Paso in the past three years.

Each migrant was charged $2,500 each, $600 of which went to the truck driver.

The smugglers housed the migrants in drop houses or hotels in the El Paso area until they were able to arrange truck transportation.

Mexico City Considers Legal Prostitution

By MARK STEVENSON

Associated Press Writer

MEXICO CITY (AP) -- The leftist party that has already legalized gay unions and abortion in Mexico City said Wednesday it wants to make prostitution legal in the capital of this overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country.

Mexico City legislator Juan Bustos of the Democratic Revolution Party, who submitted the bill on Tuesday, said the move is necessary to protect prostitutes from abuse and regulate the sex industry.

Corrupt police frequently use the current law not to arrest sex workers but as a threat to shake them down for bribes or sexual favors.

Giving Welfare to Illegals

By Robert Rector
Heritage Foundation | June 20, 2007

In criticizing recent Heritage Foundation research on the cost of low-skill immigration and amnesty, proponents of the Senate immigration legislation (S. 1348), including Administration spokesmen, have falsely claimed that the proposal would not give illegal immigrants access to the U.S. welfare system.[1]

While provisions of the Senate bill would delay illegal immigrants' access to welfare for several years, over time nearly all amnesty recipients would be offered legal permanent residence and access to more than 60 federal means-tested welfare programs.

Specifically, Z visa holders would immediately be given Social Security numbers and would begin earning entitlement to Social Security and Medicare (which are not means-tested welfare programs). Some ten to thirteen years after enactment, amnesty recipients would begin to gain access to a wide variety of means-tested welfare programs, such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, public housing, and Food Stamps. The amnesty process under S.1348, and the different stages of the process at which amnesty recipients become eligible for different government benefits, are precisely described in "Amnesty Will Cost U.S. Taxpayers at Least $2.6 Trillion."[2]

Passport rules for border crossers delayed 6 months

By Devlin Barrett / Associated Press Writer

Article Launched: 06/20/2007 02:26:55 PM MDT

Friday June 18.

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration will delay for at least six months a rule that Americans present passports when crossing the U.S. border by land or sea, officials said Wednesday.

The announcement marks the second time in a month that officials have scaled back security plans in response to complaints.

Beginning in January, land and sea travelers returning from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda will be allowed to present a birth certificate and driver's license in lieu of a passport.

Starting next year, travelers also will no longer be able to make a verbal declaration of U.S citizenship to re-enter the country.

CBP Border Patrol Seizes Nearly $1 Million in Marijuana

Del Rio, Texas – U.S. Customs and Border Protection Del Rio Sector Border Patrol agents seized 1,218.5 pounds of marijuana near Eagle Pass, Texas, Sunday.

At 9:05 a.m. Sunday, Border Patrol agents working the Border Patrol checkpoint on Highway 57 east of Eagle Pass seized the marijuana from a tractor-trailer traveling through the checkpoint. The marijuana was concealed among cargo in the trailer.

'Clay pigeon' may get immigration bill moving

The Associated Press

Only in the arcane world of the U.S. Senate could a quirky gambit known as a "clay pigeon" make the difference between passage of an important immigration measure and its death at the hands of opponents.

Democratic leaders hope the complex maneuver - which makes use of the Senate's labyrinthine rules to insist on votes on amendments - will frustrate conservatives' attempts to derail the embattled immigration bill, instead putting it on a fast track to passage next week.

Video - Ad from Newt on Immigration Bill

Bodies of 4 immigrants found in desert

The Associated Press

Jun. 20, 2007 01:41 PM

TUCSON - The bodies of four suspected illegal immigrants were found in the Arizona desert over the weekend.

The first discovery was made at about 9:30 a.m. Friday, when a U.S. Customs and Border Protection helicopter spotted skeletal remains on the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, said Richard DeWitt, a spokesman for the U.S. Border Patrol's busy Tucson sector.

This time of year the Border Patrol must become Search and Rescue. Though any death is tragic, these are of their own making. -mm

Raid of Downtown hotel nets 68 in U.S. illegally

By Adriana M. Chavez / El Paso Times

Article Launched: 06/01/2007 12:00:00 AM MDT

Sixty-eight undocumented immigrants were found in a Downtown hotel where a similar bust occurred last year.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents working with the Border Enforcement Security Team, or BEST, received a tip Thursday morning about a group of immigrants staying at the Gateway Hotel, 104 S. Stanton.

ICE spokeswoman Leticia Zamarripa said the 68 immigrants included two Nicaraguans and 66 Mexican nationals, including three Mexican juveniles.

Zamarripa said that agents interviewed each immigrant individually and that some were interviewed more than once. She said the Mexican immigrants found would be returned to Mexico within 24 hours of the bust.

"With Mexican illegal aliens, oftentimes they're removed to their country the same day," Zamarripa said.

59 illegal immigrants found after shooting, assaults

Elias C. Arnold

The Arizona Republic
May. 31, 2007 04:54 PM

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office is investigating several assaults and a shooting in connection with 59 illegal immigrants found Thursday in two Litchfield Park-area houses.

Acting on a tip, deputies found 49 people in a house in the 6000 block of North Florence Avenue, with 10 more in the 12500 block of West Orange Drive, according to the Sheriff's Office. Both houses are in an unincorporated area northeast of Litchfield Park.

One man had been shot while three others had been beaten, according to the sheriff's office.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio described the two busts as "typical" drop houses. The injuries are evidence that violence along the border in Mexico is moving north, he added.

Border Agent Allowed TB Patient in U.S.

May 31, 6:47 PM (ET)

By GREG BLUESTEIN and DEVLIN BARRETT

ATLANTA (AP) - A globe-trotting Atlanta lawyer with a dangerous strain of tuberculosis was allowed back into the U.S. by a border inspector who disregarded a computer warning to stop him and don protective gear, officials said Thursday. The inspector has been removed from border duty.

The unidentified inspector explained that he was no doctor but that the infected man seemed perfectly healthy and that he thought the warning was merely "discretionary," officials briefed on the case told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is still under investigation.