Bush ordering up to 6,000 in Guard to border

Guard needed elsewhere
Democrat Ted Kulongoski of Oregon said Guard soldiers signed up to fight the war on terrorism, not to “go and sit on the border of Mexico.” And with fire season approaching, he said, “I need our remaining National Guard soldiers to stay in Oregon to protect our forests.”

But Alabama Gov. Bob Riley, a Republican, strongly supported the plan. He said, “If we’d done this years ago, we’d have put a stop to illegal immigration.”

Governors would have the option of refusing to send troops, but White House officials said they did not expect that would be a major issue since the federal government would be paying the costs. Border state governors would have control over all National Guard troops working in their states.

$1.9 billion budget
The White House wouldn’t say how much the deployments would cost, but said the troops would be paid for as part of $1.9 billion being requested from Congress to supplement border enforcement this year.

The White House hopes deployments to the border will begin in early June.

Many congressional Republicans said they support Bush’s plan to use National Guard troops at the border. But he ran into criticism from Democrats and some other Republicans.

“The National Guard already is stretched to the limit by repeated tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as from providing disaster assistance in their own states,” said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., though he commended Bush for “courage and leadership” in weighing in on the immigration debate.

House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., indicated Bush may have some trouble getting some conservatives on board with his overall plan.

“While I appreciate the president’s willingness to tackle big problems, I have real concerns about moving forward with a guest worker program or a plan to address those currently in the United States illegally until we have adequately addressed our serious border security problems,” Blunt said.

Senate begins debate
Bush acted as the Senate began debate on sweeping immigration legislation. Democratic leader Harry Reid sought to pre-empt the Oval Office address with pointed questions for the president, as well as a demand.

“He must publicly denounce” a House-passed bill that makes all illegal immigrants subject to prosecution as felons and calls for construction of a 700-mile fence along the Mexican border, Reid said on the Senate floor.

MSNBC.COM ON THE IMMIGRATION DEBATE National Guard likely to play support role Immigration costs, benefits hard to nail down Live Vote: Should we use troops on border? Bush ordering National Guard to U.S. border A tale of two fences Report: U.S. Border Patrol demoralized Bush seeks $1.9 billion for border security NBC's David Gregory interviews Bush

White House spokesman Tony Snow said Bush had decided to propose the use of thousands of troops to support the Border Patrol while it builds up its resources to more effectively secure the 2,000-mile line between the U.S. and Mexico.

Snow said the effort would use “a very small percentage of the Guard,” which numbers about 400,000 members around the country.

About 300 National Guard troops are already on the border to assist with counter-drug operations, heavy equipment support and other functions.

About 17,000 Guard soldiers also are deployed in Iraq.

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