“The vast majority of uniformed Border Patrol agents are competent and capable law enforcement personnel,” said Arizona State Senator Al Melvin. “The problem is not with them but with their management. Napoleon once said that there are no bad regiments, only incompetent colonels. The same can be said of the Border Patrol. The way to fix this scandalous situation is to put a retired US Marine Corps general in charge of Homeland Security and another one in charge of the Border Patrol. Using current headcount and monetary resources, they will secure the border in short order. Our congressional delegation should demand that these appointments be made as soon as possible.”
But getting those appointments may prove to be futile – unless the citizens of Arizona are willing to take on ‘the powers that be’ in the state. Clearly, contacting members of congress is needed, but we are also mindful of two senators who are promoting a national narrative that is not the voice of Arizonans.
Arizona Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake have become the parrots of the Department of Homeland Security merely echoing ‘the border is more secure than ever’ meme. It would be interesting to know if there has been any significant time either Senator has spent with ranch families or having meetings in those communities hardest hit by cartel/illegal activity. That is, has either Senator been in those areas for anything but a photo-op? In February 2013, a town hall event (prior to McCain’s staged event in Tucson two weeks ago) took place in which concerned citizens took the senior Senator to task for his stand on immigration and questionable border security assessment: http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/50880271#50880271
In the video, McCain repeats the ‘secure border’ mantra while mocking a concerned constituent who is forced to pay for the Senator’s bloated salary. With that in mind, could it be lovingly and thoughtfully suggested that for every instance of property, home and personal damage performed by illegals and cartels against a rancher, McCain and Flake have to pay for it? If both senators are sincerely convinced the border is ‘more secure than ever,’ perhaps they would be willing to back up their claim with such a guarantee – especially for the people living on the frontline of the border war without representation.