Text 1803, 374 rader
Skriven 2005-11-28 23:33:06 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0511287) for Mon, 2005 Nov 28
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President Discusses Border Security and Immigration Reform in Arizona
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
November 28, 2005

President Discusses Border Security and Immigration Reform in Arizona
Davis-Monthan Air Force Base
Tucson, Arizona


˙˙˙˙˙In Focus: Homeland Security
˙˙˙˙˙Fact Sheet: Securing America Through Immigration Reform

2:40 P.M. MST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Please be seated. Thank you for the warm
welcome. It is such a pleasure to be back in Arizona, and it's great to be
here in Tucson. The last time I was here I think there was probably about a
50-degree temperature differential. (Laughter.) It's an honor to stand here
with the men and women of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. (Applause.) As
well, to be here with the men and women of the Customs and Border
Protection Agency, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, as
well. (Applause.)

Securing our border is essential to securing the homeland. And I want to
thank all of those who are working around the clock to defend our border,
to enforce our laws, and to uphold the values of the United States of
America. America is grateful to those who are on the front lines of
enforcing the border. (Applause.)

I appreciate so very much the Governor joining us today. Governor, thank
you for being here. I'm honored you are here. I appreciate Senator John
McCain joining us today. Senator. (Applause.) As well as Senator Jon Kyl.
(Applause.) I appreciate three members of the congressional delegation from
Arizona -- Congressman Shadegg, Flake and Franks -- for joining us, as
well. (Applause.) Two members of my Cabinet are here with us, the Attorney
General of the United States, Al Gonzales -- (applause) -- and the
Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Mike Chertoff.
(Applause.)

I want to thank the United States Attorney from the District of Arizona,
Paul Charlton, for joining us today. I appreciate David Aguilar, who is the
Chief of the Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection of the
Department of Homeland Security; Mike Nicely, who is the Chief Patrol
Agent, Tucson Sector; Ron Colburn, Chief Patrol Agent, Yuma Sector; Martin
Vaughan, Director of Air Operations. But most of all, I want to thank those
who wear the uniform for doing such a fine job. Thank you all. (Applause.)
Finally, I want to thank General Schmidt for welcoming me today. He's the
Commander of the 12th Air Force, U.S. Southern Command, based right here at
this base. (Applause.)

I have a solemn duty, and so do the members of the United States Congress,
to protect our nation, our Constitution, and our laws. Our border and
immigration security officers devote themselves to those same missions
every single day.

America has always been a compassionate nation that values the newcomer and
takes great pride in our immigrant heritage; yet we're also a nation built
on the rule of law, and those who enter the country illegally violate the
law. The American people should not have to choose between a welcoming
society and a lawful society. We can have both at the same time. And to
keep the promise of America, we will enforce the laws of our country.
(Applause.)

As a former governor, I know that enforcing the law and the border is
especially important to the communities along the border. Illegal
immigration puts pressure on our schools and hospitals -- I understand
that. I understand it strains the resources needed for law enforcement and
emergency services. And the vicious human strugglers -- smugglers and gangs
that bring illegal immigrants across the border also bring crime to our
neighborhoods and danger to the highways. Illegal immigration is a serious
challenge. And our responsibility is clear: We are going to protect the
border. (Applause.)

Since I've taken office we've increased funding for border security by 60
percent. Our border agents have used that funding to apprehend and send
home more than 4.5 million people coming into our country illegally,
including more than 350,000 with criminal records. Our Customs and Border
Protection agents can be proud of the work that you're doing. You're taking
control of this border. And we have more work to do, and that's what I want
to talk to you about today. We're going to build on the progress we have
made.

We have a comprehensive strategy to reform our immigration system. We're
going to secure the border by catching those who enter illegally, and
hardening the border to prevent illegal crossings. We're going to
strengthen enforcement of our immigration laws within our country. And
together with Congress, we're going to create a temporary worker program
that will take pressure off the border, bring workers from out of the
shadows, and reject amnesty. (Applause.)

Our strategy for comprehensive immigration reforms begins by securing the
border. Now, let me talk to you about a three-part plan. The first part of
the plan is to promptly return every illegal entrant we catch at the
border, with no exceptions. More than 85 percent of the illegal immigrants
we catch are from Mexico, and most of them are escorted back across the
border within 24 hours.

To prevent them from trying to cross again, we've launched an interesting
program, an innovative approach called interior repatriation. Under this
program, many Mexicans caught at the border illegally are flown back to
Mexico and then bused to their hometowns in the interior part of the
country. By returning these illegal immigrants to their home towns far from
the border, we make it more difficult for them to attempt to cross again.
Interior repatriation is showing promise in breaking the cycle of illegal
immigration.

In a pilot program focused on the west Arizona desert, nearly 35,000
illegal immigrants were returned to Mexico through interior repatriation.
Last year only about 8 percent of them were caught trying to cross the
border again, a much lower rate than we find among illegal immigrants who
are escorted directly across the border.

We're going to expand interior repatriation. We want to make it clear that
when people violate immigration laws, they're going to be sent home, and
they need to stay at home. (Applause.)

We face a different set of challenges with non-Mexicans that we -- who we
catch crossing the border illegally. When non-Mexican illegal immigrants
are apprehended, they are initially detained. The problem is that our
detention facilities don't have enough beds. And so, about four of every
five non-Mexican illegal immigrants we catch are released in society and
asked to return for a court date. When the date arrives, about 75 percent
of those released don't show up to the court. As a result, last year, only
30,000 of the 160,000 non-Mexicans caught coming across our southwest
border were sent home.

This practice of catch and release has been the government's policy for
decades. It is an unwise policy and we're going to end it. (Applause.) To
help end catch and release, we need to increase the capacity in our
detention facilities. Last month at the White House I signed legislation
supported by the members of the Arizona delegation that will increase the
number of beds in our detention facilities. We're also working to process
illegal immigrants through the system more quickly, so we can return them
home faster and free up bed space for others.

One of the most effective tools we have in this effort is a process called
expedited removal. Under expedited removal, non-Mexicans are detained and
placed into streamlined proceedings. It allows us to deport them at an
average of 32 days, almost three times faster than usual. In other words,
we're cutting through the bureaucracy. Last year we used expedited removal
to deport more than 20,000 non-Mexicans caught entering this country
illegally between Tucson and Laredo. This program is so successful that the
Secretary has expanded it all up and down the border. This is a
straightforward idea. It says, when an illegal immigrant knows they'll be
caught and sent home, they're less likely to come to the country. That's
the message we're trying to send with expedited removal.

We're also pursuing other common-sense steps to accelerate the deportation
process. We're pressing foreign governments to take their citizens back
promptly. We're streamlining the paperwork and we're increasing the number
of flights carrying illegal immigrants home. We recently tested the
effectiveness of these steps with Brazilian illegal immigrants caught along
the Rio Grande Valley of the Texas border. The effort was called Operation
Texas Hold 'Em. (Laughter.) It delivered impressive results. Thanks to our
actions, Brazilian illegal immigration dropped by 90 percent in the Rio
Grande Valley, and by 60 -- 50 percent across the border as a whole.

With all these steps, we're delivering justice more effectively, and we're
changing the policy from catch and release to the policy of catch and
return.

The second part of our plan is to strengthen border -- to strengthen border
enforcement is to correct weak and unnecessary provisions in our
immigration laws. Under current law, the federal government is required to
release people caught crossing our border illegally if their home countries
do not take them back in a set period of time. That law doesn't work when
it comes time to enforcing the border and it needs to be changed. Those we
we're forced to release have included murderers, rapists, child molesters,
and other violent criminals. This undermines our border security. It
undermines the work these good folks are doing. And the United States
Congress needs to pass legislation to end these senseless rules.
(Applause.)

We need to address the cycle of endless litigation that clogs our
immigration courts and delays justice for immigrants. Some federal courts
are now burdened with more than six times as many immigration appeals as
they had just a few years ago. A panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals
in San Francisco declared that illegal immigrants have a right to
relitigate before an immigration court as many times as they want. This
decision obviously would encourage illegal immigrants who have been
deported to sneak back into the country and to re-argue their case.
Congress needs to put an end to this cycle of needless litigation and
deliver reforms necessary to help us secure this border. (Applause.)

The third part of our plan to strengthen border enforcement is to stop
people from crossing the border illegally in the first place. And we're
increasing manpower. We're increasing technology and infrastructure across
this border. We're integrating these resources in ways we have never done
before.

Since 2001, we've hired 1,900 new Border Patrol agents. I just signed a
bill last month that will enable us to add another thousand Border Patrol
agents. When we complete these hires, we will have enlarged the Border
Patrol by about 3,000 agents from 9,500 the year I took office to 12,500
next year. This is an increase of more than 30 percent, and most of the new
agents will be assigned right here in the state of Arizona. (Applause.)

And to help the agents, we're deploying technologies. Listen, technology
can help an individual agent have broader reach and more effectiveness.
When agents can take advantage of cutting-edge equipment like overhead
surveillance drones and infrared cameras, they can do a better job for all
of us.

In Tucson, agents on the ground are directing unmanned aerial technology in
the sky, and they're acting rapidly on illegal immigration or illegal
activities they may see from the drones. In the months since these unmanned
flights began, agents have intercepted a lot of drugs on the border that
otherwise -- and people -- that otherwise might have made it through.

The legislation I signed last month provides $139 million to further
upgrade the technology and bring a more unified, systematic approach to
border enforcement. Again, I want to thank the members of the Congress.
(Applause.)

In some places, the most effective way to secure the border is to construct
physical barriers to entry. The legislation I signed last month includes
$70 million to install and improve protective infrastructure across this
border. In rural areas, we're funding the construction of new patrol roads
to give our agents better access to the border, and new vehicle barriers to
keep illegal immigrants from driving across the border.

In urban areas, we're expanding fencing to shut down access to human
smuggling corridors. Secretary Chertoff recently used authority granted by
the Congress to order the completion of a 14-mile barrier near San Diego
that had been held up because of lawsuits. By overcoming endless litigation
to finish this vital project we're helping our border agents do their job,
and making people who live close to the border more secure.

Our actions to integrate manpower, technology and infrastructure are
getting results. And one of the best examples of success is the Arizona
Border Control Initiative, which the government launched in 2004. In the
first year of this initiative -- now, listen to this, listen how hard these
people are working here -- agents in Arizona apprehended nearly 500,000
illegal immigrants, a 42-percent increase over the previous year. We've
captured a half-million pounds of marijuana, prosecuted more than 400
people suspected of human smuggling, and seized more than $7 million in
cash. You've got some good folks here working hard to do their job, and I
appreciate it very much. (Applause.)

As we work to secure the border, comprehensive immigration reform also
requires us to improve enforcement of our laws in the interior of the
country. Catching and deporting illegal immigrants along the border is only
part of the responsibility. America's immigration laws apply across all of
America, and we will enforce those laws throughout our land. Better
interior enforcement begins with better work site enforcement. American
businesses have an obligation to abide by the law, and our government has
the responsibility to help them do so. (Applause.)

Enforcing our immigration laws in the interior of the country requires a
sustained commitment of resources. Since I took office, we've increased
funding for immigration enforcement by 44 percent. We've increased the
number of immigration and customs investigators by 14 percent since 2001.
And those good folks who are working hard, too. Last year, the -- this
year, federal agents completed what they called Operation Rollback. It's
the largest work site enforcement case in American history. This operation
resulted in the arrest of hundreds of illegal immigrants, criminal
convictions against a dozen employers, and a multi-million dollar payment
from one of America's largest corporations.

Our skilled immigration security officers are also going against some of
the most dangerous people in our society -- smugglers, terrorists, gang
members and human traffickers. In Arizona, we have prosecuted more than
2,300 smugglers bringing drugs, guns and illegal immigrants across the
border. As a part of Operation Community Shield, federal agents have
arrested nearly 1,400 gang members who were here illegally, including
hundreds of members of the violent Latin American gangs like MS-13.

Since the Department of Homeland Security was created, agents have
apprehended nearly 27,000 illegal immigrant fugitives. Thanks to our
determined personnel, society is safer. But we've got more work to do. The
legislation I signed last month more than doubled the resources dedicated
to interior enforcement. We understand that border security and interior
enforcement go hand in hand. (Applause.) We will increase the number of
immigration enforcement agents and criminal investigators.

We're confronting the problem of document fraud, as well. When illegal
workers try to pass off sophisticated forgeries as employment documents,
even the most diligent businesses find it difficult to tell what's real and
what's fake. Business owners shouldn't have to act like detectives to
verify the legal status of their workers. So my administration has expanded
a program called Basic Pilot. This program gives businesses access to an
automated system that rapidly screens the employment eligibility of new
hire against federal records. Basic Pilot was available in only six states
fives years ago; now this program is available nationwide. We'll continue
to work to stop document fraud, to make it easier for America's businesses
to comply with our immigration laws. (Applause.)

As we enforce our immigration laws, comprehensive immigration reform also
requires us to improve those laws by creating a new temporary worker
program. This program would create a legal way to match willing foreign
workers with willing American employers to fill jobs that Americans will
not do. Workers would be able to register for legal status for a fixed
period of time, and then be required to go home. This program would help
meet the demands of a growing economy, and it would allow honest workers to
provide for their families while respecting the law.

This plan would also help us relieve pressure on the border. By creating a
legal channel for those who enter America to do an honest day's labor, we
would reduce the number of workers trying to sneak across the border. This
would free up law enforcement officials to focus on criminals, drug
dealers, terrorists and others that mean to harm us. Our plan would create
a tamper-proof identification card for the temporary legal worker, which,
of course, would improve work site enforcement.

Listen, there's a lot of opinions on this proposal -- I understand that.
But people in this debate must recognize that we will not be able to
effectively enforce our immigration laws until we create a temporary worker
program. The program that I proposed would not create an automatic path to
citizenship, it wouldn't provide for amnesty -- I oppose amnesty. Rewarding
those who have broken the law would encourage others to break the law and
keep pressure on our border. (Applause.)

A temporary worker program, by contrast, would decrease pressure on the
border. I support the number of -- increasing the number of annual green
cards that can lead to citizenship. But for the sake of justice and for the
sake of border security, I'm not going to sign an immigration bill that
includes amnesty. (Applause.)

I look forward to continue working with the United States Congress on
comprehensive immigration reform. In the House of Representatives, your
Arizona congressmen are building strong support for border enforcement
among their colleagues. Judiciary Committee Chairman Sensenbrenner and
Homeland Security Chairman King are moving bills that include tough
provisions to help secure this border. The House plans to vote on this
legislation soon; I urge them to pass a good bill.

The Senate is continuing to work on border legislation, as well. This
legislation improves border security and toughens interior enforcement and
creates a temporary worker program. Senators McCain and Kyl have taken the
lead. It's two good men taking the lead, by the way. I'm confident
something is going to get done that people of Arizona will like, with these
two Senators in the lead. (Applause.)

Majority Leader Frist and Judiciary Committee Chairman Specter said they're
going to take action in early 2006. See, we have a chance to move beyond
the old and tired choices of the immigration debate, and come together on a
strategy to enforce our laws, secure our country, and uphold our deepest
values.

We make good progress, but you know like I know, there's a lot more to be
done. And we've got to continue to work together to get that done, and I'm
optimistic that Congress will rise to the occasion. By passing
comprehensive immigration reform, we will add to this country's security,
to our prosperity, and to justice.

Our nation has been strengthened by generations of immigrants who became
Americans through patience and hard work and assimilation. In this new
century, we must continue to welcome immigrants, and to set high standards
for those who follow the laws to become a part of our country. Every new
citizen of the United States has an obligation to learn our customs and
values, including liberty and civic responsibility, equality under God and
tolerance for others, and the English language. (Applause.) We will
continue to pursue policies that encourage ownership, excellence in
education, and give all our citizens a chance to realize the American
Dream.

I appreciate once again being here with the Border and Immigration Security
officers who have volunteered for a difficult and urgent assignment. I
appreciate their courage. By defending our border, you're defending our
liberty, and our citizens, and our way of life. I'm proud to stand with you
today, and the American people stand with you, as well. May God bless you
all, and may God continue to bless our country. (Applause.)

END 3:06 P.M. MST

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