Edited on Sat May-13-06 02:30 PM by Dr. Jones
Washington - Once again the Bush administration is turning to the military to help solve a domestic problem. But instead of hurricane aid or preparations to cope with avian flu, the Pentagon is being asked to possibly provide thousands of National Guard troops to shore up the U.S. border with Mexico, as part of President Bush's effort to gather support for an overhaul of the nation's immigration laws.
According to senior administration officials, Bush is considering plans to use federal funds to pay for National Guard troops deployed along the southern border...As discussions among the White House, the Pentagon and the states continued on how the military could be used to secure the southern border, defense officials said that states want the federal government to pick up what will be a significant tab for the increased security. Officials had no estimates on that cost.
Bush's speech Monday night is intended to build support for broad immigration overhaul by taking substantive steps to secure the border. His focus on the military echoes statements he made after Hurricane Katrina, saying the military may need to play a stronger role in disasters. He also later suggested he would consider using the military to enforce a quarantine in the event of a bird flu pandemic.
The National Guard is generally under the control of the state governors, but Guard units can be federalized by the president, such as those sent to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Active duty military may not be used for law enforcement unless the president authorizes it.
Source:
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051306X.shtml