12.03.01

Senator Cantwell Praises Administration's Decision to Deploy National Guard to the Northern Border

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) today praised the Administration's decision to send the National Guard to the northern border to help Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) inspectors.

"The Administration's decision is a very important step in the right direction toward the ultimate goal of increasing the number of INS and Customs personnel along the northern border," Cantwell said. "But this is only a short-term solution."

It takes about a year to hire and train the permanent personnel needed to secure the border. "The deployment will provide much needed relief to INS staff while we hire and train new permanent personnel," Cantwell said.

Cantwell, a leader in the Senate on increasing resources on the northern border, successfully fought to include language in the anti-terrorism bill signed into law on October 26, 2001 to authorize the tripling of the number of INS and U.S. Customs personnel on the northern border.

"We ask a lot of the men and women who work along the northern border. They are exhausted and need relief to ensure the continued security and efficiency of the northern border. While today's decision provides short-term relief, the long-term solution is to fund more permanent personnel along the border," Cantwell concluded.

Cantwell worked with Governor Gary Locke (D-Wash.) on the state's request to deploy the National Guard to the northern border. On November 16, 2001, Governor Locke sent a letter to President Bush formally asking that the National Guard be sent to Washington state's border.