As if the Obama administration’s decision to sue the state of Arizona over their recently passed immigration bill weren’t enough, the federal government has virtually surrendered control of a part of Arizona to Mexican drug cartels.The Fish and Wildlife Service has ordered Americans to stay out of southern portion of the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, closing off 80 miles of the refuge’s boundary and practically ceding 3,500 acres of the 118,000-acre park to the control of Mexican drug dealers and illegal immigrants.
Further north, signs along the southern side of I-8 between Casa Grande and Gila Bend Arizona (which crosses the Table Top Wilderness Area) read:
• Danger-Public Warning Travel Not Recommended
• Active Drug and Human Smuggling Area
• Visitors may encounter armed criminals and smuggling vehicles traveling at high rates of speed.
• Stay away from trash, clothing, backpacks, and abandoned vehicles
• If you see suspicious activity, do not confront! Move away and call 911
• BLM encourages visitors to use public lands north of Interstate 8.
The area was once a family hiking and off road vehicles area. It has now been dubbed the “smuggling corridor.”
Coming after Obama halted construction of the fence on the Mexican border and made a show of deploying a small number of National Guard members to the border, local law enforcement officials are indignant.
Pina County Sherriff Paul Babeu remarks, “It is literally out of control and violence has increased just in the last 4 months … we stood with Senator McCain and literally demanded support for 3,000 soldiers to be deployed to Arizona to get this under control and finally secure our border with Mexico.”
He adds, “We need support from the federal government. It’s their job to secure the border and they haven’t done it. In fact, President Obama suspended construction of the fence and it’s just outrageous … it’s shameful that we as the most powerful nation on earth can win wars and liberate countries throughout history yet we can’t even secure our own border.”
Southern Arizona law enforcement officials managed to capture photographs of armed drug cartel members delivering drugs to vehicles along Interstate Highway 8.
Sheriff Babeu asserts, “We are outgunned, we are out manned and we don’t have the resources here locally to fight this.”
So what is the White House’s response to the terrorizing of Americans along the Mexican border? Improve wages for illegal aliens!
Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis openly announced that she would use government sources to fight for “fair wages” to be paid to illegal aliens. In an advertisement paid for by American taxpayers, Secretary Solis encourages illegal immigrants to call her, at a publicly funded phone number (866-487-9243), to secure their right “to be paid every cent that they earned … whether [they are] documented [here legally] or not.”
Solis’ outreach is in direct violation of the Federal Immigration and Nationality Act Section 8 USC 1324, which reads: “Any person who … encourages or induces an illegal alien to…reside… knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such…residence is…in violation of law, shall be punished as provided”.
Perhaps Solis would be persuaded by Americans — rather than "undocumented" workers — calling that phone number to let her know exactly how they feel about her unwillingness to enforce the law and the Constitution.
If not, congressional elections are coming up this fall and all federal agencies are beholden to Congress for their funding.
Photo: A Customs and Border Patrol agent backdrops the American Flag along the international border in Nogales, Arizona: AP Images
