America’s oldest living former governor

The wife and a friend of former Arizona Gov. Raul Castro are calling for changes in Border Patrol procedures after agents recently detained the frail 96-year-old in 100-degree heat for more than a half-hour…

Castro said he was traveling from his home in Nogales, Ariz., to celebrate his 96th birthday in Tucson when his vehicle triggered a radiation sensor at the Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 19 north of Tubac.

Castro said agents sent him to another inspection area and continued to question him outside his vehicle for 40 to 45 minutes even though he explained that he had undergone hospital testing on his pacemaker the previous day, likely triggering the sensor…

The Mexican-born Castro was governor of Arizona from 1974 to 1977. He was the state’s first and only Hispanic governor. He and his wife retired to Nogales after he served as U.S. ambassador to Argentina. He also served as ambassador to Bolivia and El Salvador in the 1960s.

Being civil to a gentle old man who dedicated his life to his state and his naturalized country used to be a natural part of life. Gone, now; but, not forgotten.



  1. George says:

    So this incident happened when? Under the Bush Administration?

    I know that our kind, compassionate, and giving President Obama would never let this happen under his watch. Obama loves all of us no matter our color, but he especially loves the brown ones because he is allowing all the undocumented ones to stay.

    • orchidcup says:

      The DHS was formed in 2003 under the Bush Administration.

      • Fahrenheit533 says:

        DHS was formed when the Democrats insisted and pushed for it despite Republicans objecting to the centralization of so much power.

        • orchidcup says:

          On March 1, 2003, DHS absorbed the Immigration and Naturalization Service and assumed its duties. In doing so, it divided the enforcement and services functions into two separate and new agencies: Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Citizenship and Immigration Services. The investigative divisions and intelligence gathering units of the INS and Customs Service were merged forming Homeland Security Investigations. Additionally, the border enforcement functions of the INS, including the U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. Customs Service, and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service were consolidated into a new agency under DHS: U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

        • Publius says:

          You are so full of shit F533

    • Anonymous says:

      I do wish we could have a few more DETAILS from time to time – here! You can follow the link in the story or try another source:

      http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/05/12582496-raul-castro-96-year-old-former-us-ambassador-and-arizona-governor-detained-at-border-patrol-checkpoint?lite

      You might note that this incident happened on June 12, 2012 during Obama’s administration.

      So, you’re welcome George! Now you can rest knowing that this incident didn’t happen during the Bush years. In fact, it happened during Obama’s last year. (Not that you couldn’t have clicked on the included link or Googled it and found out for yourself or anything.)

  2. dusanmal says:

    And the word of the day is…. provocation. This is so much typical Agit-Prop move that it is sickening someone actually arranged for it to happen in the USA. Shame on the Progressive Left for using elderly as a toy in their ideological machinations. What’s next from that textbook? – putting women and children in front and shooting from behind them? Despicable.
    As for agents job – they were setup intentionally by people who knew what those agents must do by the book, and apparently they did their jobs as required by the job description. That is what they should have done, rare case with Government employees – so they deserve employee of the month recognition or something.

    • Cap'nKangaroo says:

      You have gone so far off the rails I don’t believe a map would even help.

      Some nefarious shadowy unnamed group arranged for this very thing to happen to make some unspecified political point? And who is the point aimed at? The current sitting Prez, as shown by George’s post. The prior administration? Border Patrol? The Tea Party?

      “they were set up intentionally” leaves me with the impression you are trying to usurp Alfie’s position of the most irrational poster to this blog.

      • jpfitz says:

        Agreed about dusanimal. Seems to find the left or progressive abuse in almost everything. I think not having a “normal” American upbringing may have tainted his perspectives.

        Poor old guy getting no respect. They could have f’in googled him to confirm who he is. Police state just keeps on truckin.

    • orchidcup says:

      Radiation sensors are designed to detect a nuclear device entering the country.

      There was no need to interrogate anyone for 40 to 45 minutes.

      The agents could have cleared the vehicle in a matter of a few minutes.

      • deowll says:

        Sensors can pick up a lot of things at levels that are harmless. This would have been such a case. Somebody at the top needs to have a working brain so the people at the bottom can follow regulations with out looking like total fools.

        If you have a senior with a pacemaker on a hot day they should have moved him inside.

        • Cap'nKangaroo says:

          There may not have been an inside to move him to. According to the Wikipedia link I provided further down (in reply to AdmFbr), the second paragraph under “Tactical Checkpoints” states that Congress would not fund permanent checkpoints in the Tuscon sector. “Due to Congressional restrictions against the funding of permanent checkpoints in the Tucson sector, all of its checkpoints are tactical checkpoints.”

          “A tactical checkpoint might consist of vehicles, traffic cones, signs, a portable water supply, a cage for canines (if deployed), and portable rest facilities”

      • Cap'nKangaroo says:

        Here is a link to the type of radiation monitor that was most likely used.

        http://ara.com/Newsroom_Whatsnew/press_releases/pr_nuclear_terr.html

        What we do not know is what checking the Border Patrol did while the former Gov waited. Did they check with the hospital/doctor to confirm his story? Did they use a handheld unit to do a follow up inspection on the vehicle? (which would require the vehicle to be unoccupied) Did (or could) they use the handheld scanner on him.

        Another question comes to mind. Would a terrorist that had recently worked with radioactive materials to construct a dirty bomb have set off the sensors like this gentleman?

  3. dadeo says:

    Police are useless without their procedures and protocols..and with, it seems.

  4. The0ne says:

    We need this to happen more and more often!! C’mon people lets start a petition to have rich people rounded up and question/probe for minutes/hours on end. This way, we can have things change instead of nothing happening. If the rich or powerful are annoy enough maybe there might be change 😀

  5. WmDE says:

    He must have an old school pacemaker. They quit with the atomic powered models in the mid 80s. They used Plutonium-238 in a nuclear “battery.” The heat generated by the Plutonium caused a thermopile to produce electricity.

    I suspect the amount of Plutonium is sub-critical.

    • NobodySpecial says:

      He had a test, that may have involved injecting a radioactive marker. Or more likely the detector is a POS and goes off at random, and the police respond because the computer said so.

  6. NewformatSux says:

    So let’s see, he had the same name as the President of Cuba, and he set off a radiation sensor.

    At 96 years old, he’s lucky he wasn’t killed for wasting so much health care.

  7. NewformatSux says:

    Doesn’t Arizona know that they are not allowed to enforce immigration law?

    • Cap'nKangaroo says:

      The article clearly states that this was a Border Patrol checkpoint, thus a Federal government operation.

      • jpfitz says:

        What border was being protected. Flagstaff?

        • Cap'nKangaroo says:

          Tubac, Az is roughly midway between Nogales, AZ and Tuscon. The Border Patrol likes to put these checkpoints miles from the border to try and catch the illegals. Consider it “defense in depth”. If the illegals evade the patrols along the border, they need to catch a ride across the desert and these checkpoints are meant to catch them.

          It was such a checkpoint on I-10 in near Sierra Blanca, Texas that caught Willie Nelson in Nov 2010 and Snoop Dogg this past January.

  8. NewformatSux says:

    So apparently someone who tripped up a radiation sensor is not worth an hour of time from the authorities.

  9. kmfix says:

    This is the price you pay to live in a free society. Oh wait. My bad.

  10. AdmFubar says:

    I’m with _jr_, what the hell is the border patrol doing about 20 miles in from the actual border? why are they harassing us citizens withing these borders?
    wouldnt their time be more productive on the actual border? lets stop the illegal crossing at the border, not several miles inside…

    something is very wrong with this…

    • Cap'nKangaroo says:

      They do this as a second layer to try to apprehend illegals and drug smugglers. If the illegals/smugglers evade detection at the border, they will find transportation inland. The Border Patrol has these stations set up either some 10’s of miles inland or much further inland at some choke point or crossroads.

      Here is a link to a better explanation of them and the locations of the more permanent ones.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Border_Patrol_Interior_Checkpoints

  11. Dallas says:

    I can’t believe that current bitch Republican governor would do that to a former governor.

  12. mmsbpodcast says:

    Let the Oligarchs of the world cower in fear at the vandals sacking the churches.

    They’re so few and we are so many, but they have so much while we have so little.

    At some point, poverty, (not wealth,) redistributes itself; if only by sheer cussedness since the inheritors far outlive their capacities, and sheer bloody-mindedness, of their ancestors.

    Look at India… Fascinating history lessons can be drawn from there.

  13. NewformatSux says:

    More likely the governor was recruited to be arrested to give them a high profile story of a small amount of radiation being detected and caught by the authorities.

  14. Yar says:

    If only we could keep ALL our politicians from reentering the country. Dare to dream….


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