100s of Border Patrol SUVs in shop

Tucson Citizen ^ | June 22, 2002 | Susan Carroll

[Tancredo Fan]

Nearly half of the vehicles assigned to Border Patrol agents in the Tucson Sector are in the garage awaiting repairs, union officials say.

Of the 543 sport utility vehicles designated for use by field agents and station management, 234 are broken and out of commission.

[Tancredo Fan]

The military has been needed on the border for years. They would stop the insanity. Let the BP deal with the millions of illegals who have already gotten here.

[Tancredo Fan]

Ping!

[Geezerette]

Amen! You said it!!

g (an AZ Tancredo Fan fan)

g

[janetgreen]

The government can afford to support illegal aliens in every way possible, but can't afford to keep the border patrol vehicles running.... homeland security, Washington style.

[LibKill]

The military has been needed on the border for years.

I propose that we bring home all of our troops from the various 'meals on wheels' programs and put them on the border.

[Marine Inspector]

The Tucson Sector accounts for approximately 50% of all Border Patrol apprehension along the entire Mexican border.

How many more could they catch, if their vehicles worked?

[toddst]

The Border Patrol fleet has mostly Ford Expeditions. Vehicles have suffered from a lack of repairs and maintenance for years, Tuffly said. The problem became critical last month, after Border Patrol mechanics were forbidden to work overtime, he said.

No mention of problems with Suburbans - don't they have any? Perhaps using Ford products is part of the problem.

Per mechanics and overtime, sure sounds like they need more mechanics. Bad management, sounds like to me.

[Tony in Hawaii]

Maybe they could put the border-crossers to work.
You'd be amazed at the vehicles they manage to keep running.

[swampfox98]

This is not a priority of the Bush administration.

[RicocheT]

The Border Patrol should use SUVs for mostly road patrols and have outside shops fix them if the in house shop is behind.

For mainly off road, they should be issues something tough like the HumVee. Off road hobbyists beef up their Jeeps and SUVs with heavy duty parts, plus carry spares for parts commonly broken. If you want a fun read, look at some of the off road magazines. They call the scratches they get when they brush rocks "racing stripes."

[marron]

A drive along the border before sundown is entertaining and instructive. Hundreds of people begin to gather, on the US side of the fence, mind you. Smoking, talking, kicking a soccer ball around. Waiting for it to get a little darker.

A couple hundred yards away is *one* Border Patrol guy sitting in his pickup, waiting for them.

Once it gets dark enough, they head north. The Border Patrol guy will grab one or two, put them in the pickup, and then take them in to process them. The other 500 or so just go right on by, as if nothing.

Of course, within a couple of hours, the two he grabbed will sign some papers and be transported back to the Mexican side of the line; the odds are on their side that they will get across tomorrow night. No problem.

We need to quintuple the size of the Border Patrol, but even that will do nothing, until we start prosecuting the folks that hire them. These people cross because they have good jobs waiting for them. The idea that illegals are all working for minimum wage is a myth. Many of them have good jobs waiting.

Big farms are only part of the picture, although many of them are Repubs, and that is a problem. But the big slaughterhouses, the industrial food plants, all are dependent on illegal labor. And need to be prosecuted to the max. Do this, and the problem of sealing the border becomes much simpler.

[RainDog]

If you need dependability in rough terrain, only a Chevy will do. The most frequent "Expedition" a Ford truck/SUVmakes is to the repair shop.

[CWRWinger]

"Keeping those vehicles safe and maintained is the highest priority," Haley said. "We take it very seriously any time an agent reports a problem with the vehicle."

Sorry Charlie, the highest priority is securing the borders. How about getting some vehicles from the Nat'l Guard, like some tanks and anti-personnel stuff while the 'mechanics'are trying to figure out where the hood release is.

[WRhine]

The military has been needed on the border for years. They would stop the insanity. Let the BP deal with the millions of illegals who have already gotten here.

Big Bump to that Tancredo Fan. This need for this was so apparently clear 20 years ago yet even today after the horrors of 9/11 the Beltway Tyrants continue to block the only measure that will halt this now secular crisis. The way Congress and the last few presidencies have kept the INS/BP in a constant state of disarray and disrepair speaks volumes about where they are coming from.

[jigsaw]

The government can afford to support illegal aliens in every way possible, but can't afford to keep the border patrol vehicles running.... homeland security, Washington style.

Well said!

[Willie Green]

For mainly off road, they should be issues something tough like the HumVee.

HumVees mounted with 50 cal. would be the minimum.
A fleet of Abrams would be more useful.

[Lazamataz]

SUV's are not built for military duty.

HMMV's are.

[toddst]

For mainly off road, they should be issued something tough like the HumVee.

That makes sense to me. However, if Border Patrol management won't allow overtime for their mechanics I suspect the cost of buying HumVee's would cause them to pass out LOL. Regardless, get their wheels working and agents back in the field where they belong!

[Lazamataz]

HumVees mounted with 50 cal. would be the minimum. A fleet of Abrams would be more useful.

Waste of resources. Abrams use fuel like we use air. Also, Abrams require tons of maintenance. There is no enemy armor threat. I'd recommend HMMV's with .50's and helicopter patrols for mobility and reconnaisance.

[Jennikins]

Willie, what I would like to know is, where did the Mexican Military that shot at one of our Border Patrol Agents a couple of weeks ago, get their Humvees??. No doubt from us, all paid for by the U.S. Taxpayer.