Norm, you and I have this discussion before. You’re entitled to your own opinion not your own facts. Perry supports strategic fencing. Should he do more? Yes. Could he do more? Yes. Is there plenty of room for criticism? Yes.
Comparisons to China and Israel are strawmen.
A common refrain of detractors of Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s record on stopping illegal immigration is that he is against a border fence. Perry himself has spoken on the record against a fence. Yet, being against building a continuous fence along the U.S.-Mexico border is not akin to having a position against border security, or for a left wing agenda of “open borders.” Perry has a strong record of action to secure the U.S. border with Mexico that is much more comprehensive than all of his opponents in the G.O.P. primaries. His record includes advocating strategic fence placement, better surveillance, and deploying more “boots on the ground.”
If you have ever visited or lived near the border regions of Texas, you will agree with me that constructing a fence along the entire 1,200 mile Texas-Mexico border is not only horribly expensive, but very disruptive to the environment, private property, and the Rio Grande. This does not mean that Perry is against all fences. Governor Perry supports strategically-placed fencing in urban areas. Building a continuous fence along the U.S.-Mexico border has unintended consequences. Consider this report from the Los Angeles Times:
In and around Brownsville [Texas}, the fence slices through two-lane roads, backyards, agricultural fields, citrus groves and pastures for more than 21 miles, trapping tens of thousands of acres, according to some property owners’ estimates. (The Homeland Security Department did not keep track of the total.) Narrow gaps allow back-and-forth access for cars and tractors, pedestrians and Border Patrol agents, but they are as much as a mile apart.
A Department of Homeland Security Border Patrol Agent in Del Rio, Texas once told me, “A fence only slows them down enough so that we have a chance to catch them. It does not stop them.”
Although Perry doesn’t believe the fence is the total solution, he does advocate, and has a record of acting upon, placing more patrols to the border. Rick Perry organized the Texas Ranger Recon force, sending 150 Texas Rangers (Motto: “One riot, one Ranger”) along with helicopters and Texas National Guardsmen to the border, all paid for with Texas state funds. Some examples of deployment operations were “Operation Linebacker” and “Border Star” (2009).
Although border security is a federal responsibility, according to the Office of the Texas Governor (via Politifact), Perry spent about $30 million from his office’s budget on border security operations in fiscal years 2006-07. The Legislature allocated $110 million for border security in 2008-09 and more than $110 million for 2010-11, for a total of $250 million through 2011.
Perry is pragmatically against the border fence, as envisioned by advocates who are not experienced in Texas border topography or politics. He IS a strong advocate for securing the border, as his record reveals. His real world experiences prove to him that simply building a fence alone will not get the job accomplished. Click here to download Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s comprehensive plan for border security in Texas, 2010-1015.
In the video below, Eagle Pass, Texas Mayor Chad Foster explains the perils of erecting a border fence, including concerns about eminent domain, environmental problems, costs, and lack of effectiveness. The video was taken in 2007 when the City of Eagle Pass was suing the federal government over the fence.
I agree I am absolutely not entitled to my own facts. Rick Perry personally said he opposes a border fence. South showed you the quote.
Smart fencing does not and never has worked. Nor is it a real fence. That too is a fact.
A real fence eliminates the ability of Democrats to turn off smart fencing. That is a fact.
Do you disagree with the reality of these ‘facts’?
“Comparisons to China and Israel are strawmen.”
No. They are not. Please show exactly how they are or retract.