The issue has reached the legislative branch, a little more pressure and they might actually DO something about it

IIRC the nationwide polls have 80% of American Citizens agreeing on this issue

DEPORT THE ILLEGALS, BUILD THE WALL, ELECT LAWMAKERS THAT SUPPORT THE RULE OF LAW
Minuteman Project back on front burner
By Brady McCombs
For the Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona
01.21.2006
www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/112357
The Minuteman Project will catapult itself back into the spotlight this weekend with a return to the border and a big-screen debut.
Today and Sunday, a group of 50 to 65 Minuteman civil defense corps volunteers from Arizona will patrol three to four miles of dirt road off Arizona 286 near Three Points, southwest of Tucson and 35 miles north of the border, said Stacey O'Connell, Minuteman Arizona director.
On Friday, Minuteman co-founder Chris Simcox was in Park City, Utah, at the Sundance Film Festival promoting the premiere of a documentary, Crossing Arizona, that features footage and interviews with Minuteman volunteers. The film — directed by Joseph Mathew — examines the complex issues of the border crisis.
The weekend patrol and movie debut are the first pair of activities for a group that plans to stay in the spotlight this year in an effort to keep illegal immigration on the tips of Americans' tongues.
In April, organizers are expecting an estimated 1,500 volunteers to participate in a month-long patrol at undecided border spots in Arizona, New Mexico, California and Texas, O'Connell said. Organizers will call on their volunteer corps again in October for a second month-long patrol.
A year after the group formed, O'Connell said the Minuteman philosophy and goals remain basically the same: to keep illegal immigrants from entering the country and pressure politicians to pass measures to slow the flow of entrants, estimated at 700,000 a year by the Pew Hispanic Center.
This year, Minuteman leaders are also asking volunteers to organize activities in their communities, such as protests of day-laborer sites.
"That's really the only way we can be successful — do what we do on the border and be active in our communities as well," O'Connell said.
The group's relationship with the Border Patrol remains shaky. While O'Connell said they informed the Border Patrol about their weekend patrol, Gustavo Soto, spokesman for the Tucson Sector of the Border Patrol, said he was unaware of the plans.
Soto said the agency will respond to reports of illegal entrants from the group just as it does with any citizen report. Beyond that, he said there is no level of cooperation. The agency has concerns about Minuteman volunteers setting off sensors set by Border Patrol agents, and the members' ability to stay safe.
"We are the ones best-trained to take care of this activity," Soto said.
Soto disputes the Minuteman claim that the Border Patrol, which has 2,339 agents in the Tucson Sector, fails to do its job. He said arrests of illegal entrants were down 11 percent in 2005 from 2004 for the October-December period.
A union of Tucson Border Patrol agents, Local 2544 of the National Border Patrol Council, has a much less adversarial approach to the Minutemen. Mike Albon, union spokesman, said the volunteers didn't bother agents in past patrols.
"As long as they don't interfere with the normal operation, they can do their thing," Albon said.
Kat Rodriguez, community organizer with Derechos Humanos, a Tucson-based human rights group, said the Minuteman presence sends an ugly message, unintended or not.
"When you have people coming in from outside of our communities with a very myopic, ignorant rhetoric, it's not conducive to a healthy discussion about the issues," Rod- riguez said. "And it doesn't feel good to the people who live in those communities."
Wes Bramhall, president of Arizonans for Immigration Reform, supports the Minuteman Project efforts in Arizona.
"I think they're helping because the illegals know they are going to be there at certain times and it probably keeps some, not many but some, from coming," Bramhall said.
Minuteman leaders chose the Three Points site because of its position in a popular corridor for illegal immigrants, O'Connell said. They'll use this weekend's patrol to train new volunteers from the state.

bump

slow the flow of entrants, estimated at 700,000 a year by the Pew Hispanic Center

The head of the BP testified to congress that they caught HALF of the 2MILLION that made the trip annually
(of course they let the MILLION that they caught go............inside of the US)

this one issue will be the END of the GOP majority and POTUS

Quoted: this one issue will be the END of the GOP majority and POTUS

How so?

Quoted: Quoted: this one issue will be the END of the GOP majority and POTUS How so?

Uhhhhhhh...........a lot of lifelong republicans are REALLY pissed about their inaction re illegals