Hunter Asks for National Guardsmen Along Border

A San Diego congressman suggested Monday that National Guard troops be stationed along the U.S.-Mexico border in an effort to combat illegal immigration, drug trafficking and the threat of terrorism.

“It’s clear that we still don’t have the control of our border,” said U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Republican whose district includes the California border area.

Hunter acknowledged at a news conference in San Diego that his plan would require approval of both federal and state officials. He said he had spoken about the matter to Gov. George Deukmejian and to National Guard officials in Washington but had not submitted a formal proposal.

Kevin Brett, a spokesman for the governor, said policy makers were reviewing the suggestion but had yet to take a position. The governor would have veto power over deployment of the state’s 26,000 guardsmen, Hunter said.

On Monday evening, Hunter was scheduled to tour the border area with Army Maj. Gen. Herb Temple, a top National Guard official.

Hunter’s proposal comes at a time when a number of federal agencies have stepped up enforcement efforts along the border in an attempt to crack down on illegal immigration and drug trafficking. Some officials have publicly called for the deployment of U.S. troops.

Critics have condemned such suggestions as extreme and unworkable, and Hunter’s plan was quickly assailed on similar grounds. Herman Baca, chairperson of the Committee on Chicano Rights, called the idea of posting National Guardsmen along the border “a very simplistic and dangerous proposal.”

“It’s doomed to be a policy of failure,” said Baca, whose group favors bilateral discussions with Mexico on border problems.

Under Hunter’s proposal, guardsmen would serve their two-week stints assisting officers of federal agencies such as the U.S. Border Patrol, Customs Service and Drug Enforcement Administration, which operate along the border. The congressman suggested that the guardsmen might assist in manning border inspection booths or radar stations.