Texas taking steps to self secure their border.

State beefing up border force

Web Posted: 02/10/2006 12:00 AM CST
Isadora Vail
Express-News Austin Bureau

AUSTIN — Texas is boosting local and state law enforcement along the Mexico border after reports of violence, drug activity and threats have increased in recent weeks.

Gov. Rick Perry announced Thursday the creation of "Operation Rio Grande" to help local police and county sheriffs along the border by providing more state officers, investigators and equipment.

"Adding manpower and being better equipped will greatly deter anyone from crossing the border," Val Verde County Sheriff Vicente Rodriquez Jr. said.

Perry already has moved some Texas Department of Public Safety troopers to the region.

Texas Rangers, game wardens, state SWAT teams, detectives and canine search teams will join crews from the Department of Transportation, who'll use road barriers and flight surveillance teams from the DPS in the effort.

The exact number of law enforcement officials wasn't released. Perry also was reluctant to say what the officers will be doing, where they will be deployed, how long they will be there or the cost of the program. No new officers are being hired and no new equipment is being purchased for the program.

The move is in response to several recent instances along the border that have gained international headlines.

A bundle of assault weapons and cash was found in Laredo last week, and last month, drug traffickers crossed the Rio Grande after being chased by Hudspeth County deputies and state police.

Men dressed in Mexican military uniforms and driving a military-style, armed Humvee watched over the scene as the drug runners crossed the river back into Mexico.

Just this week, drug cartels made threats against the two deputies involved in the chase and their families.

Texas Rangers are investigating the weapons cache and the threats.

The state effort is a boost to the Texas Border Sheriff's Coalition, a consortium of 16 border sheriff's departments that has received nearly $10 million in state grants since December under the "Operation Linebacker" program to increase border patrols, purchase vehicles and investigate border crimes.

"I am taking these actions to make sure Texas is safer and more secure," Perry said. "We are going to take back our border from those who exploit it."

Perry, who returned to Washington on Thursday accompanied by some border sheriffs after announcing the new plan, said the primary job of border security should be left to the federal government.

However, Texas will "not wait for Washington to take all the necessary actions," the governor said.

Perry activated the emergency management council and made the State Operations Center in Austin the central point of coordination for all agencies and will handle incident reporting and intelligence support for agencies.

The Texas National Guard will help with planning, positioning officers and providing air assets.

"We're one of the spokes on the wheel," said Col. Bill Meehan, spokesman for the Texas National Guard. "We're not the lead for any of this by any stretch of the imagination."

Perry has said that for the time being, the Guard won't be used directly on the border, but it wasn't clear Thursday if he had ruled out the use of troops along the river.

Meehan referred that question to the governor and said the guard had neither been directed to make contingency plans for a larger military presence on the border nor done so on its own.

Perry spokeswoman Kathy Walt said National Guard troops were not needed on the border "at the moment. But that is why the central operations center is there, to research the needs of the border."

Meehan demurred when asked if plans already were in place for increasing the Guard's border presence.

"As far as what the governor's doing, I'll refer you back to the governor, and I'm not really going to kind of talk about what future plans are," he said.

www.mysanantonio.com/news/stategov/stories/MYSA021006.01A.perry_border.10ef7133.html

Cheers

I can just hear it now "Texas is racist!"

IBTMMH (in before the Minute Men haters)

Quoted: IBTMMH (in before the Minute Men haters)

+1

Read between the lines on this one.

Here is my take on this.  A good DPS trooper stopped some illegals in Dallas (incert city name).  His boss was annoyed because this cost resources and is against R. Party Platform.  Good trooper just got shipped to Border (so illegals elsewhere will not be bothered).  

This is bs politics, not reform.  It is all about getting re-elected at this point - but the last thing Gov Perry wants to do is plug the boarder unless his Pres.  tells him to.

saw this last night on the news...   the laredo mayor was PISSED....



seems she wants more money not more manpower...



also she seemed pissed cause the .govner has not delivered on the 100 DPS troops he promised a year ago < dont know if thats true,,, but thats what she was bitching about>


same segment they intervied the police chief for N.laredo ..   and how he is never for away from his assualt rifle... he put in his 2 cents of how more LEO;s are not needed on the US side...

this coming from a police chief of a city that had a major newspaper bombed that day.. < but why the hell would they interve the mexican police chief about more LEO's on the US border?>

I wonder when will the bullets start flying.

I have a very good friend in the DPS Special Operations.   I'm going to have a chat with him to see what this is about.

My bet:  Just media fodder from Perry's camp.  This won't make a beans worth of difference (no pun intended).


CMOS

I hope they have finally gotten the balls to do something-

From a pal of mine in Texas:
"Both of the agencies I work with (TDCJ and the Adjutant General's Dept - (TX Natl Guard)) have people sent down there - TDCJ has canine trackers sent from their prisons!  Hopefully I'll get some interesting stories out of it."


Cheers

I was watching CNN last night , and a liberal moonBat said ' this texas border crackdown - is just leading to more racial profiling'-----   NO SHT.