Bush Visits Border, Pushes Immigration Proposal

On Monday, President Bush returned to a portion of the U.S.-Mexican border near Yuma, Arizona, which he had last visited 11 months ago. This visit came at a time in which Bush is making a strong effort to gain support for his immigration policies, despite opposition among both parties.

During the visit, Bush met with Michael Chertoff, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. The two took some time to look at the Predator unmanned aircraft, used by border patrol officers to monitor the area, and other border security measures. Examining the two-layer fence erected along the border since his last visit, the president told border officials, "It's amazing the progress that's been made. I was most impressed by your strategy, but more impressed by the fact that it's now being implemented."

Bush also pointed to a drop in the number of illegal immigrants apprehended while trying to cross the border as a sign that his border-security policies are working. "When you're apprehending fewer people, it means fewer are trying to come across," Bush said. "And fewer are trying to come across because we're deterring people from attempting illegal border crossings in the first place." According to data provided by the White House, the total number of apprehensions along the Mexican border by 30 percent, from 594,142 to 418,184. In the Yuma sector, which the president visited and which covers parts of Arizona and California, apprehensions fell by a full 68 percent, from 79,131 to 25,217.

Bush also used the visit to rally support for further immigration reform. The policies he proposes would include measures for illegal immigrants currently in the country to eventually obtain citizenship, without going so far as to offer complete amnesty. "People who entered the country illegally should not be given amnesty. Amnesty is the forgiveness of an offense without penalty," Bush said. Instead, he described the need for a bipartisan effort to arrive at "practical answer that lies between granting automatic citizenship to every illegal immigrant and deporting every illegal immigrant."