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Growing debate in Republican Party circles about the fence along the U.S.-Mexico border; in addition to the effectiveness of a fence in stopping illegal immigration, many point to the cost: the project could cost up to $60 billion over the next 25 years, and involve government seizure of private property
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According to DHS, the vast majority — more than 70 percent — of illegal aliens and contraband attempting to move across our border through official ports of entry will succeed
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DHS reasserted its right to search, even without a cause, laptops at border crossings; travelers may want to make sure their data are safe
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DHS formalized policy regarding searches of electronic devices and media at border crossings; such searches may be conducted without suspicion or probable cause
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Follow the money
Whitetail, Montana, an unincorporated town with a population of 71, sits on the U.S.-Canada border; the Whitetail border checkpoint sees about three travelers a day; still, the sleepy checkpoint received $15 million under President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus plan; critics wants to know why
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Honolulu airport is one of thirteen U.S. airports that will use a new screening process beginning 24 August; the Global Entry pilot program, intended to streamline the customs and security process for “trusted” air travelers
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The U.S. Army wants to use GE’s trace detection system; the device may be used for drug detection and explosive detection
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New electronic passport control for Australians and New Zealanders will allow bypassing queues for baggage screening from the end of this year
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DHS has stepped up inspection of trains headed to Mexico; Napolitano: “For the first time we have begun inspecting all southbound rail shipments into Mexico”
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DHS secretary Janet Napolitano announced the addition of $30 million in Operation Stonegarden grants; these funds supplement the $60 million in Operation Stonegarden grants announced by Napolitano in June
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Mexican drug cartel have a new revenue stream: they siphon oil from Mexican government pipelines and smuggle it into the U.S., where the oil is sold to refineries
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The Home Affairs Committee looked at the role of the National Biometric Identity Service (NBIS) in student visa applications as part of a report into migration processes; universities have already voiced their concerns that the enrollment of students will depend on the untested NBIS, and the MPs say they share this concern
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Latin American drug lords now rely on semi-submersibles to smuggle drugs into the United States; the other day, the USCG interdicts one semi-submersible in the Eastern Pacific
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The Obama administration has mandated that by 8 September, all contractors who do work with the federal government must use E-Verify to ensure their prospective employees can legally work in the United States; senators say it is too easy to fool the current E-Verify system
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EADS’s win of the massive Saudi border fencing contract, valued at $2.3-2.8 billion, is part of the defense contractors effort to use homeland security projects as a means to bolster its revenues
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Analysis
The post-9/11 get-tough policy toward immigration has meant booming business for private prison-management companies; the building of prisons and detention centers is now a much-needed source of income for cash-strapped rural communities
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The Pentagon has to find a new site for anti-drug flight operations after Ecuador declined to extend the lease at Manta
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Both supporters and opponents of the effort to enlist citizens to keep an eye on Texas’s border with Mexico agree that, so far, it has not worked; the question is whether to scrap the plan or continue to fund it
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Five-hundred government officials, policy experts, and business leaders from the United States and Canada gather to discuss the impact of security measures along the U.S.-Canada border on commerce; their conclusion: What is good for the U.S.-Mexico border may be unsuitable for the U.S.-Canada border
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More and more government documents which U.S. citizens are now required to present at border crossings and entry points — e-passports, electronic PASS cards, enhanced driver’s licenses — are equipped with RFID tags so they can easily be scanned by readers; trouble is, they can be scanned through a pocket, backpack, or purse from thirty feet, opening the door for a digital identity pickpocketing
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The long view
ICE Not Only Looks and Acts Like a Paramilitary Force – It Is One, and That Makes It Harder to Curb
ICE and CBP meet many but not all of the most salient definitions of a “paramilitary force.” Both are also not subject to the same constitutional restrictions that apply to other law enforcement agencies. ICE and CBP thus bear some resemblance to the informal paramilitaries used in many countries for “regime maintenance,” carrying out political repression along partisan and ethnic lines, even though they are official agents of the state.
How the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks Shaped ICE’s Immigration Strategy
The immigration enforcement response to 9/11 set the stage for ICE’s aggressive conduct. Under this way of thinking, if the homeland is under threat, then those who challenge immigration enforcement are “domestic terrorists.” Investigations into ICE officers are muted, for the officers are protecting the homeland against existential danger. Severe tactics to detain immigrants and condemn protesters – and violate U.S. citizens’ constitutional protections — become not only permissible but also advisable.