From the Washington Post
WASHINGTON — The Senate gave final approval late Friday to legislation authorizing the construction of 698 miles of double-layered fencing on the U.S.-Mexico border, shelving President Bush's vision of an overhaul of U.S. immigration laws in favor of a vast barrier.
The measure was pushed hard by House Republican leaders, who wanted legislation that would make good on their promises to get tough on illegal immigrants, despite warnings from critics that a multibillion-dollar fence would do little to address the underlying economic, social and law-enforcement problems, or to prevent others from slipping across the border.
The bill passed in the Senate 80 to 19, with 26 Democrats joining 54 Republicans in support. The only Republican voting against the bill was Lincoln Chaffee of Rhode Island. So far congress has approved $1.2 billion for the fence.
That figure, however, is only a down payment and falls far short of the $6 billion the fence is expected to cost. The border now has 83 miles of fences. Lawmakers from both parties conceded that, even at 698 miles, the new barriers would leave nearly 1,200 miles of border uncovered.
In addition to money for starting work on the fence, a Homeland Security bill passed Friday by both houses includes $380 million to hire 1,500 more Border Patrol agents and money to build detention facilities to hold 6,700 more illegal immigrants until they can be deported.
Smart move to protect our borders? Campaign publicity stunt? What do you think about this fence?
