The US border issues

Governor Jan Brewer had requested a meeting with President Obama about the Arizona Immigration law. The meeting has already taken place and both the white house and Governor Jan Brewer have said it was a good meeting and that they both agreed to work with each other to get the illegal immigration issue that Arizona and other border state are facing.

I hope that something will be done and done soon about the illegal immigration issue facing this country and the citizens living in our country. Americans have enough to worry about these days and we do not deserve to have to put up with this yet.

Also, just the other day a news story said a 15 year old boy from Mexico was killed while throwing rocks at a border patrol agent while the boy was trying to cross the border illegally. I am sorry for the loss of life but this just go's to prove that our borders need to be secured much better then they are at present.

However, the people crossing the boarder illegally are not the only ones in danger. The United States border patrol agents face constant danger everyday and in the 2007 and 2008 fiscal years more then 1000 attacks have occurred on our border patrol agents. Between April 1991 and Jan. 20, 2010, El Paso Border Patrol agents were attacked 23 times in incidents reported by the news media. Some of the more serious incidents involved gunfire. Here are highlights of those encounters:

July 2, 1997: Two Border Patrol agents reported that two shots were fired from the Mexican side of the border near the El Paso Rescue Mission. The agents didn't believe they were the targets but rerouted traffic at West Paisano Drive as a precaution.

February 1992: An alleged marijuana smuggler was killed near the 1900 block of West Paisano Drive when he tried to grab a Border Patrol agent's shotgun and it went off.

April 1991: A 19-year-old Ju rez man was killed when he tried to attack a Border Patrol agent near the Paso del Norte Bridge.

Feb. 1, 1998: Five rifle shots were fired from Ju rez at Border Patrol agents patrolling West Paisano Drive; one bullet struck the passenger door of the agents' vehicle. The bullet, which might have been fired from a high-powered rifle, hit the door just below the seat.

Jan. 13, 1998: Border Patrol agents shot and killed a 19-year-old Ju rez man who allegedly pointed a gun at them at the Chamizal National Memorial.

May 26, 2000: A smuggler escaped into Mexico after shooting at Border Patrol agents. One of the agents was injured by flying glass when a bullet ripped through the windshield of his marked van; he was about eight miles east of the Fabens border crossing.

April 19, 1999: A Border Patrol agent wearing body armor was shot twice in the chest and once in the back by an unknown assailant in the Columbus-Deming, N.M., area. The agent was patrolling a trail four miles east of the Columbus border crossing when he was surprised by an unknown number of people. The agent was not injured, and no one was arrested.

Nov. 30, 1998: Border Patrol agents reported a suspicious car about a half-mile from the Fabens border crossing. They later found the car abandoned and stuck in mud. The trunk was open, and two large bundles of marijuana were visible. A Border Patrol helicopter pilot told the agents a van was parked on the Mexican side of the border with several people inside. About 15 gunshots were fired at the agents from the area of the parked van. The agents took cover, and no one was injured. The agents did not return fire.

March 25, 1998: A Lower Valley man died after he was shot while allegedly attempting to run over a Border Patrol agent. The shooting occurred on Loop 375 about a quarter-mile west of Zaragoza. El Paso police said two Border Patrol agents were responding to a call about an illegal border crossing.

Feb. 1, 2002: Two Border Patrol agents in separate vehicles were patrolling near the Fabens border crossing when they spotted a suspicious car. One of the drivers who saw the agents approaching tried to return to Mexico. The driver then abandoned the car and fled on foot to Mexico. One of the agents was in his vehicle when he heard a loud noise while he was chasing the suspects. He discovered that his rear side windows had been shot out. The suspects got away.

Feb. 13, 2007: A group of alleged immigrants threw rocks at a Border Patrol agent who opened fire but hit no one. The violence took place along the Rio Grande off the César Chávez Border Highway near Fonseca Drive.

April 17, 2006: A man in a pickup was shot when he allegedly tried to run over a plainclothes Border Patrol agent in the parking lot of the Alamo Auto Supply store.

Feb 17, 2005: Border Patrol agents José Alonso Compéan and Ignacio Ramos shot a drug smuggler in the buttocks. The smuggler was fleeing back to Mexico. The case received national publicity after the agents were accused of concealing details of the incident from their superiors. They were set free from prison after President George W. Bush commuted their sentences.

Jan. 12, 2004: Drug smugglers on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande shot at Border Patrol agents in broad daylight; no one was hit. Border Patrol agents, whose view was obscured by bushes, did not return fire.

May 30, 2003: A man driving a pickup loaded with marijuana was shot and killed near the Fabens border crossing. The incident involved a pursuit by Border Patrol agents following an anonymous tip.

Feb. 22, 2003: A Border Patrol agent shot and killed an unidentified man suspected of entering the U.S. illegally after the man allegedly threatened the agents with a metal pipe in Central El Paso.

Between April 1991 and Jan. 20, 2010, El Paso Border Patrol were attacked 23 times in incidents reported by the news media. Some of the more serious incidents involved gunfire.

Here are highlights of those encounters:
Jan. 20, 2010: A Border Patrol agent near the Bridge of the Americas called for help because a group of people were throwing rocks from the Mexican side of the border. Another agent fired a pepperball launcher, which shoots projectiles filled with pepper spray. But the rock throwing continued. An agent then fired one round from a handgun at the rock-throwers. There were no known injuries.

Oct. 23, 2008: Border Patrol agents chased an alleged smuggler who crossed back into Mexico, where he was joined by another person; they began throwing rocks at the agents. "The smuggler took position behind a small tree, pointed a handgun and yelled he was going to kill them (the agents)," Border Patrol spokesman Doug Mosier said. The agent responded by firing three rounds from his service-issued handgun before the smuggler fled.

Aug. 10, 2007: Juárez resident Jose Alejandro Ortiz Castillo was shot after he attempted to assault a Border Patrol agent. Four people -- Ortiz, a woman and two other men -- attempted to cross into the United States illegally.

All can be found at http://www.elpasotimes.com/news/ci_15256857?source=rss

Mexico's Immigration laws are vet very similar to the United States immigration laws. However, the one big difference is Mexico enforces their immigration laws. I think every America should demand President Obama to secure the United States borders at once.