Rep. Solomon Ortiz has been sounding an alarm since last summer that al-Qaeda might exploit the porousness of the nation's southern border and now the Department of Homeland Security agrees with him. Admiral James Loy, deputy Homeland Security secretary, said in written testimony he gave the Senate Intelligence Committee Tuesday that "recent information from ongoing investigations, detentions and emerging threat streams strongly suggests that al-Qaeda has considered using the southwestern border to infiltrate the United States."
Loy said that al-Qaeda operatives believe they can pay to get into the country through Mexico and that entering illegally is "more advantageous than legal entry." But Loy also said there's no conclusive evidence that al-Qaeda operatives have entered the country illegally through those methods.
| If I was in the homeland security business, a hint would be enough to set me investigating. Conclusive evidence is for courtrooms. Indications and probabilities are for intelligence analysis. |
Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi, has been urging the federal government to end its practice of releasing non-Mexican immigrants awaiting deportation hearings after they've been arrested for illegally entering the country. The majority of the non-Mexican immigrants released are from Latin American countries. Officials have said that detaining the immigrants would be costly. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement keeps in custody those that have committed crimes or are considered a public threat and on average have about 21,000 people in custody daily nationwide. Cathy Travis, a spokeswoman for Ortiz, said some who are arrested and released are from "countries of interest." |