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WASHINGTON – A senior official in the Obama administration doused hopes today that the Canadian border will be treated differently than the beefed-up Mexican boundary where drug violence is escalating and countless illegal immigrants flood into the United States every day.
“One of the things that we need to be sensitive to is the very real feelings among southern border states and in Mexico that if things are being done on the Mexican border, they should also be done on the Canadian border,” Janet Napolitano, the secretary of homeland security, told a Canada-U.S. border conference. “We shouldn’t go light on one and heavy on the other,” she said of the Canadian and Mexican borders.
“This is one NAFTA, one area, one continent, and there should be parity there. I don’t mention this to suggest that everyone in this room will agree with that, I mention it to suggest it’s something I have to deal with, and so I ask for your sympathy.” Her comments came after she testified at U.S. Senate hearings into growing drug violence at the U.S.-Mexican border that’s prompted President Barack Obama to redeploy more than 500 federal agents to border posts and the Mexican interior. He’s also redirected US$200 million to combat smuggling of illegal drugs, money and weapons.
The United States is concerned that drug wars that killed 6,000 people in Mexico last year will spill across the border. Mexico says that American guns are fueling the violence. Napolitano told the hearing it would probably take weeks to complete a contingency plan for sending U.S. National Guard troops to border areas. She later had a sobering message for Canadians hopeful that, under Obama, there would be freer movement of goods and people across a Canada-U.S. border that looks almost Utopian compared to the chaos at the American-Mexican boundary: it’s a real border and things aren’t easing up anytime soon.
“There is a lot of concern on both sides of the border … are we really ready?” she acknowledged.
Let me get this straight, this is being done to spare Mexico’s feelings? This makes absolutely no logical sense to me… I have to assume this is about increasing the size and budget of law enforcement, our only growth sector. Another stupid Obama appointee.
Found by Mister Justin.
Paul… it was a joke. Think about it.
#36, Jim,
Any reference that starts our “Well George Washington grew pot, …” has just dismissed itself from reality. Up until at least 1850 it was most common that farmers grew everything they needed. As most large plantations exported their tobacco and cotton in bales, they would grow HEMP for the fiber to wrap and tie the bales.
Hemp is closely related but NOT the same as marijuana grown for smoking. Hemp was replaced by manila fiber later on as that was cheaper and stronger.
But I am sympathetic to your point.
#2. I agree with you there, Static416. They heading off the next wave of draft-dodgers. When they get around to bring that back to fill the ranks. But so far the “economic draft” has been working. Clever, the gov getting the banks to drive the young, unemployed, right into the arms of the recruiters. By ruining most civilian job prospects. Are we turning (or are we already turned) into the “free-world” equivalent of the Soviet Union and its military driven economy.
Think about it. Even the US’s national highways were built to move troops across the country, quicker. Why? To stop its own citizens from getting a out of hand, if they thought their gov had screwed them over too much? Nobody ever questioned the rationale for that project. Fortunately, it worked out the best for commerce. But I doubt that was forseen. Big rigs hadn’t been invented yet.
The other fear about Canada is, the drug traffic. But it’s the cheaper prescription drugs coming in, that really “scare” Homeland Security. Apparently NAFTA doesn’t allow for THAT sort of cheaper goods, competing with our over-priced and protected domestic drug supply. They can outsource US jobs, and import everything else manufactured abroad, accept drugs and big ticket weapon systems. Cause the US corporate giants that profit big from their sales, require absolute import restrictions.
#38, Pinkie Undies,
Go fuck yourself. I am sure you know how.
I assume you wanted to prove my point about the number of knuckle draggers showing up here.
#42… Thanks Mr Fusion… a history lesson is always welcome.