Reinforcing the fence

Rep. Duncan Hunter, a top proponent of the U.S.-Mexico border fence, today introduced a bill that would return the fence to a two-tiered structure running along 700 miles of the border, as it was originally envisioned in the 2006 Secure Fence Act.\ \ \ Last year Congress included in its massive year-end spending bill language that cut back on the fence, including dropping the requirement that it have two tiers and deleting the specific locations Congress called for the fence to be built.\ \ \ President Bush signed the bill into law.\ \ \ Mr. Hunter's bill would undo those changes.\ \ \ "The omnibus spending bill dismantles the only legislative advancement made in recent years towards securing our border with Mexico, and represents a prescription for failure that directly threatens the safety, security and prosperity of the American people," said Mr. Hunter, California Republican.\ \ \ The Department of Homeland Security consistently has balked at the broad sweep of the mandate, arguing that only 370 miles of fencing is needed and that DHS knows the best locations, though they are still studying what those locations are. (We won't ask how DHS is convinced 370 miles is the right number if they don't even know the proper locations yet.)\ \ \ Mr. Hunter said DHS has built only 75 miles of fencing and only five miles meets the two-tier standard from the 2006 law. DHS says it has built far more and is on track to complete 370 miles and another 200 miles of vehicle barriers by the time Mr. Bush leaves office a year from now.\ \ \ — Stephen Dinan, national political reporter, The Washington Times