Investigate Border Patrol "stand-down" orders

Americans concerned about illegal immigration have long wondered about President Bush's commitment to secure borders. Given his persistent pressure on Congress to pass various amnesty measures (though he scrupulously avoids the "A" word) and the CAFTA (Central America Free Trade Area) treaty, that has seemed to be a valid worry.

Now a May 13, 2005 report in the Washington Times seems to show that the concerns are justified. According to "more than a dozen" Border Patrol agents, "orders relayed by Border Patrol supervisors at the Naco, Ariz., station made it clear that arrests were 'not to go up' along the 23-mile section of border" that had been patrolled by the Minuteman organization.

If arrests were to increase after the Minutemen left the area, the success of their volunteer efforts would be even more obvious. That would be a blow to the president's apparent policy of neglecting border security.

Skeptics may ask why any president would want to neglect border security while making it appear that effective enforcement of immigration laws is impossible. The answer is simple: open borders are consistent with Bush's fixation on creating the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas), a European Union-like super-government for North and South America. Addressing our border problems would be a step away from the copious flow of people, business and government regulation that FTAA would bring about. As such, it would encourage further opposition to ratification of CAFTA and the FTAA, both keystones of the president’s agenda.

That's a subject for another column. Meanwhile, we are faced with embarrassingly obvious evidence that the agency charged with enforcing border security is trying to cover up its failure by ordering its agents to stand down in a key illegal border crossing area. Americans need to know whether this is true, and if so where the orders came from. Congress should immediately start an investigation to answer these questions.

If the facts are as stated by the Border Patrol whistle blowing agents, the officials responsible are guilty of conspiring to prevent enforcement of the immigration laws, and should be prosecuted. If the orders came from as high as the Oval Office, they are an impeachable offense. Congress needs to determine the facts and ensure that any such orders are countermanded and those responsible are punished.

A deeper problem is the president's general reluctance to enforce immigration laws, prompted by his campaign to submerge US sovereignty under CAFTA and FTAA. Americans need to make it clear to our representatives in Congress that we want secure borders, and that they must do what it takes to encourage the president to enforce the law.