By Alison Peek
Salt Lake City Political Buzz Examiner
Examiner.Com
May 28, 2010
Utah Senator Orrin Hatch signed on Wednesday to co-sponsor Arizona Senator John McCain's bill sending 6,000 National Guard troops to the border between the United States and Mexico, five times the number ordered by the President.
Saying the troops would be in a supporting role of the US Border Patrol, Hatch believes the troops would serve as "a strong deterrent against the violent crime, the drugs and the crime that are spilling over into American communities," Senator Hatch said in a statement.
Under McCain's bill, the 6,000 troops would be stationed on the borders of California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas until the Secretaries of Homeland Security and Defense and the governors of the occupied states have "operational control" of their respective borders.
President Obama announced Tuesday he would deploy 1,200 troops to secure the border between the United States and Mexico. Response has been everywhere from fear of endangering immigrants and residents, to "not enough."
It was also announced by Assistant Secretary for the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency John Morton that deportations of undocumented immigrants have increased by 40% this year alone. The largest group deported is criminal immigrants, but some are non-criminal. It is estimated that 400,000 were deported in 2009.
http://www.examiner.com/x-37114-Salt-Lake-City-Political-Buzz-Examiner~y2010m5d28-Hatch-tells-Obama-to-send-6000-troops-to-the-border
