Crackdown at Border - Crime Drops!

It is amazing when the American people step up and do something… we get real results. Sometimes that means not waiting for the government to decide what to do if anything about the problem.

Between June, 2005 and June, 2006, Val Verde County experienced a 76 percent drop in major crime. It’s an unusual statistic, and the sheriff credits only one thing: a major crackdown on border incursions by Texas public safety officers.

Operation “Linebacker” has been underway for several months, but in June, the state swarmed about a fifth of the 1,200-mile border with an extra thousand patrol officers, pulled from the Department of Public Safety, Parks and Wildlife and Texas Task Force One.

Texas Homeland Security Director Steve McCraw says that operation discouraged drug dealers and other criminals from attempting their traditional border crossings.

At a briefing for border sheriffs Tuesday in Del Rio, Governor Rick Perry said the drop in crime is proof that a strategic deployment along the Mexican border can have a direct impact on public safety.

Chris Simcox has kept his promise and volunteers have begun building the Minuteman Border Fence. Chris has asked me (Peter Kunz) to give you a quick update on the activities and planning for the current fence project and our next site that starts in July.

People in opposition to the fence who are not part of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps have been talking to each other in emails and on the radio???and we have a case of the blind leading the blind. No one has called the Project Manager to get the facts, which follow.

First, let me say thanks to the brave ranchers who are stepping up to put their lives on the line to stop the illegal invasion. They live and work within spitting distance of the Mexican border every day. These brave men and women are working side by side with Minutemen in this war zone they call home, allowing us to secure America.

Second, let???s be clear. Not every single mile of the border or every ranch or rancher is the same. The full-on Israeli-style Security Fence is our primary design and first choice for construction. However, when circumstances dictate adjustment to a Border Fence with barbed wire and a vehicle barrier or another design to meet local requirements, we will make the necessary adaptations???and keep building.

Our plan: Do the job until our government does its duty.

Announce the need for the Minuteman Border Fence.

Ask again that President Bush do his duty and secure the border.

Schedule a groundbreaking to get the Border Fence launched.

Begin raising the $55 million needed for 70 miles of fence in AZ.

Work with ranchers to design fence to meet specific private landsite requirements.

Get steel and contractors to manage the sites.

Register and vet fencing volunteers.

Build a Minuteman Fence Security Plan to patrol fencing.

Set up Volunteer Crews administration and crew management.

Continue to build fence as fast as resources allow.

Start more sites in TX, CA and NM as donations and volunteer capacity permit.

Continue Border Watch and Fence Operations until the border is secure.

It is nice to have concerned citizens and local government willing to step up to the plate to keep us safe.

THM’s Bacon Open Post participant