September 19, 2010

UNDERMINING LAW AT MEXICO BORDER

Arizona sheriff Paul Babeu says President Obama is “undermining the rule of law” by blocking border enforcement needed to prevent illegals and narco-terrorists from flooding into the United States from Mexico.

In an exclusive interview, Newsmax reporter David A. Patten writes that Sheriff Babeu feels the Obama administration has actively thwarted law enforcement efforts to help secure the border.

“As a consequence, Mexican drug cartels now control some parts of Arizona” says Babeu  who is president of the Arizona Sheriffs Association.

“Every day, there are paramilitary squad-sized elements escorting drugs or human illegals with AK-47s,” he said.

“They have scouts on top of high points of terrain, hill tops -- and literally for miles and miles they control movement in these areas.

“Now we’re the ones who patrol this area.  I can tell you quite honestly that we do not control those parts of the areas because we’re not there all the time.  They know when we are there and not there.  We don’t even have a helicopter.”

UNSTABLE BORDER

Babeu, an outspoken supporter of Arizona’s controversial new immigration law, said the administration has made it more difficult to protect citizens on an increasingly unstable border.

“The federal government -- instead of supporting us and saying, ‘You go Arizona’ --said ‘Sorry we can’t help you’.

“They decided to go a step further and drag us into court with the ACLU, so they’re undermining the rule of law.

“They literally want to leap frog over border security and go right to amnesty.  And that’s not going to happen.  This is our country.  You just don’t get to citizenship by breaking the law,” he said.

NATURE OF VIOLENCE

“The nature of the violence ‘bleeding over into America’ has changed during the past year.”

Sheriff Babeu lists the following among his chief concerns:

• His department, which is responsible for patrolling an area larger than the state of Connecticut, faces two or three high-speed pursuits a night. “That never happened before,” he said.
• His deputies routinely face drug gang members armed with Ak-47 automatic rifles.
• In April, one of his deputies was wounded seriously when six members of a Mexican drug cartel ambushed them. The gangs that smuggle humans and drugs are becoming more aggressive. “We have sheriffs here in Arizona -- myself included -- who have death threats against us by the Mexican mafia and the drug cartels.”
• “More than 20 percent of illegals passing through this county are OTMs – border patrol jargon for 'other than Mexicans.' Some are coming from ‘nations of interest’ known for terrorists – such as Yemen, Somalia and Jordan.”

OUTSPOKEN CRITIC

Babeu, who -- along with Maricopa Sheriff Joe Arpaio -- has been an outspoken critic of the administration’s failure to secure the southern border said: “You’ve got to be kidding! And, this is not considered a national security threat, when we know their MO  -- what they’re trying to do: to have sleeper cells come into America?”

Also, Sheriff Babeu told Newsmax that he is certain border fences work.  One reason for his confidence: he helped build the fence that protects San Diego.

He urged the administration to resume construction of the double-walled border fence -- and to send another 6,000 soldiers to secure the border.  Of those, he said 3,000 need to be assigned to patrol Arizona.

HIGHWAY POSTED

The Bureau of Federal Land Management has responded to the escalating violence by posting signs along 60 miles of highway linking Tucson and Phoenix, warning citizens – in English -- that the area is unsafe because of armed criminals, drugs and alien smugglers.

Babeu told Newsmax that he wants President Obama to visit the border regions and  “take these damn signs down!”

Sheriff Babeu added: “This is the United States of America.  This isn’t half way across the world.  This is our country! We should have a right to enjoy our own safety and freedom here in America – and not have to worry about armed squads of illegals and armed squads of drug cartel members.  We don’t even feel safe in our homes and on our own property in many parts of my county.”

Babeu said he believes it’s only a matter of time until the administration files a lawsuit against him or one of his officers, claiming they racially profiled.

Those who hammer their guns into plows, will plow for those who do not.

Common sense is instinct.  Enough of it is genius.
--- Josh Billings

Don’t carry moderation to extreme.

There are ten types of people – those who understand “binary” and those who don’t.

By Lindsey Wilger Williams, retired newspaper publisher and syndicated columnist