Am I correct that the bill/fence is not yet funded?
I believe 1.2 billion was funded. I think the total ticket is more like 4.6 billion.
BTW: These figures are a Hell of a lot more than the numbers that were getting tossed around here when describing what it would cost to build a border fence to cover then entire length of the Southern Border.
NO, you are NOT correct. There was $1.2 billion in fence funding signed just last month in Homeland Security appropriations bill. More on the way.
Hard to say. See Post 28:
"Its [the fence's] cost is not known, although a homeland security spending measure the president signed earlier this month makes a $1.2 billion down payment on the project. The money also can be used for access roads, vehicle barriers, lighting, high-tech equipment and other tools to secure the border."
You are ABSOLUTELY correct.
It was only partially funded some weeks back, but the money has since been allocated for other things. But, he's serious about border security. 'Virtually' that is! LMAO
Cornyn: 700 miles of border fence won't happen Senator says doesn't have funds.
Cornyn: 700 miles of border fence won't happen Senator says plan isn't practical, doesn't have the necessary funds.
By Eunice Moscoso WASHINGTON BUREAU Wednesday, October 04, 2006
WASHINGTON — Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican and key liaison to the White House on immigration, said Tuesday that 700 miles of fencing approved by Congress for the United States' southern border will probably not be built because of a lack of money and other practical considerations. "It's one thing to authorize. It's another thing to actually appropriate the money and do it," he said.
Cornyn predicted that some fencing would be built as part of a comprehensive strategy that includes more Border Patrol agents, more technology, more detention facilities and various physical barriers.
"There's different kinds of fencing. . . . There's the old fence post and barbed wire, and then there's the virtual fence, which is a combination of physical barriers, people and technology, and I think, in the end, that will probably be how this is addressed," he said.
Cornyn added that 700 miles of fencing would not solve the problem of illegal immigration because it would still leave about 1,300 miles of unfenced border.
"I'm not sure that's the most practical use of that money," he said.
In many border areas, the federal government would have to figure out how to compensate land owners for the property used for the fence, which raises a lot of practical questions, he said.
In addition, residents in the Rio Grande Valley, El Paso and South Texas are concerned that a fence could harm legal trade and commerce back and forth across the border, which is key to jobs and the economy in those areas, he said.
Cornyn defended the Senate vote for the fencing, saying it was a symbolic gesture to show that Congress is serious about protecting the border.
Last-minute bill changes funding for border fence
WASHINGTON - No sooner did Congress authorize construction of a 700-mile fence on the U.S.-Mexico border last week than lawmakers rushed to approve separate legislation that ensures it will never be built, at least not as advertised, according to Republican lawmakers and immigration experts.
GOP leaders have singled out the fence as one of the primary accomplishments of the recently completed session. Many lawmakers plan to highlight their $1.2 billion down payment on its construction as they campaign in the weeks before the midterm elections.
But shortly before recessing late Friday, the House and Senate gave the Bush administration leeway to distribute the money to a combination of projects -- not just the physical barrier along the southern border. The funds may also be spent on roads, technology and "tactical infrastructure" to support the Homeland Security Department's preferred option of a "virtual fence."
The loopholes leave the Bush administration with authority to decide where, when and how long a fence will be built, except for small stretches east of San Diego and in western Arizona. Homeland Security officials have proposed a fence half as long, lawmakers said.
This case reflects political calculations by GOP strategists that voters do not mind the details, and that key players -- including the administration, local leaders and the Mexican government - oppose a fence-only approach, analysts said.
It has NOT been funded, why means this whole exercise was a sham!!!!!!
probably