The Arizona Republic
Asa Hutchinson, the nation's top border security official, today will get a firsthand look at problems facing communities along the 377-mile Arizona-Mexican border as he begins a two-day tour of a region where illegal immigration often is viewed as a bigger threat than terrorism.
"I'm going there to listen and learn," Hutchinson said of his first visit to the border since becoming head of the Bureau of Border and Transportation Security at the new Department of Homeland Security. "This is really my first occasion to see the unique difficulties faced by the farmers and ranchers along the Arizona border."
Hutchinson, a former federal prosecutor and lawmaker from Arkansas, is charged with the daunting responsibility of enforcing immigration laws and protecting the nation's land borders, seaports and airports against potential terrorists.
Hutchinson and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who arranged the tour, will visit ports of entry and Border Patrol stations in San Luis, Nogales and Naco. They also plan to meet with state and local elected officials from San Miguel, San Luis, Nogales, Yuma, Bisbee and Naco. Joining them will be Republican Sen. Jon Kyl, GOP Rep. Jim Kolbe and Democratic Rep. Raul Grijalva.
Hutchinson and McCain are certain to get an earful from Arizonans about illegal immigration. One million to 2 million illegal immigrants trek through Arizona each year. Almost 40 percent of the 1 million illegal immigrants apprehended nationwide last year were caught in Arizona, according to the latest numbers.
Posted by Suzanne at March 15, 2003