Troops to the border

[Sangersteve]

Texas Gov. Rick Perry is set to announce Monday that 1,000 U.S. National Guard troops will be deployed to the Rio Grande Valley, according to an internal memo detailing the plan obtained on Sunday.

State Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, confirmed that Perry is set to announce the deployment on Monday.

“Gov. Perry plans to hold a press conference tomorrow at 2 p.m. and he is calling up the National Guard to help out on the border,” Hinojosa said Sunday evening. “Of course, we are opposed to bringing up the National Guard. We do not need to militarize the border. These are families and children. We need to manage the situation.”

The National Guard troops will be deployed to the Valley to join the Texas Department of Public Safety in its recent surge to combat human smuggling and drug trafficking amid the influx of mostly Central Americans illegally crossing the Rio Grande.

“This is not a militarization of the border,” the memo states. “The DPS and the National Guard are working to keep any drug and human trafficking south of (U.S. Highway) 83 and with the goal of keeping any smuggling from entering major highways to transport East/West/and North.”

DPS officials want to send National Guard troops into western areas of the Valley and the ranch lands further north, according to the memo.

“Smuggling has supposedly according to DPS moved West on the border with an increase in Jim Hogg County,” the memo states. “DPS especially wants to apply the Guard in the rural areas to patrol.”
The National Guard deployment will cost up to $12 million per month, with $9.8 million of that personnel and vehicle costs and another $2.4 million estimated to cover the cost of helicopters.

“It would take a month to get 1,000 troops on the ground but they will only slowly call up the troops,” the memo states.

Activating the National Guard alongside DPS personnel will bring Texas’ total cost of deploying additional resources to the surge to $5 million per week.

“It is not clear where the money will come from in the budget,” the memo states, adding that Perry’s office has said the money will come from “non critical” areas, such as health care or transportation.

[BigTex]

How's his golf handicap?

[planosteve]

There's drug trafficking on the border? Who knew?
At least the money is coming out of healthcare which is a "non critical area". Unless your sick.

[GFB]

About friggin' time!

[planosteve]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

[Houston]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

so its Rick Perry as president. could he be any where near as inept as the current POTUS?

[crocmommy]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

So what is Perry supposed to do? Sit on his hands and wait for the federal government to do something?

[planosteve]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

So what is Perry supposed to do? Sit on his hands and wait for the federal government to do something?

Well, read what he said. He's not sending them to stop the immigrants from coming. He's sending them to "combat human smuggling and drug trafficking".

[grouchy]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

so its Rick Perry as president. could he be any where near as inept as the current POTUS?

Yes. Probably in spades.

[scarlett~nc]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

so its Rick Perry as president. could he be any where near as inept as the current POTUS?

No !

[GFB]

Notice that he's not actually sending them to guard the border. He can't legally do that.
This is all about wasting Texas taxpayers money to get Rick Perry nominated for president. It will backfire. We're talking Rick Perry here.

So what is Perry supposed to do? Sit on his hands and wait for the federal government to do something?

Well, read what he said. He's not sending them to stop the immigrants from coming. He's sending them to "combat human smuggling and drug trafficking".

Whatever.. illegals will now see some men in uniform with guns..instead of baby sitters dressed at border agents...maybe it'll seem a little too much like back home..and they'll retreat.

[Mark]

I want troops posted all along the border....with orders to shoot to kill.

Every encroachment on our border is an assault on our sovereignty.

[crocmommy]

[quote="crocmommy
So what is Perry supposed to do? Sit on his hands and wait for the federal government to do something?

Well, read what he said. He's not sending them to stop the immigrants from coming. He's sending them to "combat human smuggling and drug trafficking".

Whatever.. illegals will now see some men in uniform with guns..instead of baby sitters dressed at border agents...maybe it'll seem a little too much like back home..and they'll retreat.[/quote]

yeah that...

[Kiamichi]

As long as feel-good laws and policies exist that basically mean that any of the six billion other people in the world that would rather live here than in their own countries, and that feel strongly enough about it to go through the inconvenience of temporary detention, are free to remain here the rest of their lives and in a matter of time bring the rest of their families there can be no such thing as "deterrence".