Union: Border Patrols Barely Aided by Bush

A union leader representing Federal border patrol agents Feb. 7 blasted President Bush's latest staffing proposal, saying that it left U.S. Customs and Border Protection without adequate resources to keep terrorists and illegal immigrants from entering the United States.

COLLEEN M. KELLEY: Not enough to make difference.

National Treasury Employees Union President Colleen M. Kelley said that the move to add 539 CBP officers to the force would result in only two more additional employees at each port of entry.

'A Lapse in Judgment'

"This budget proposal represents a serious lapse in judgment," Ms. Kelley said in a statement. "In order for CBP to be successful in its twin mission of stopping terrorists and illegal people and goods from entering the country while facilitating legitimate travel and trade, thousands of additional CBP Officers must be hired. This ongoing shortfall serves our country poorly."

She believed the CBP needed to expand by as many as 4,000 new officers. The NTEU currently represents 22,000 employees in CBP. Ms. Kelley has previously pointed to long lines at the El Paso, Texas border crossing as a sign of understaffing at the agency. She has also called for an end to the "One Face at the Border," which combines the work of enforcing customs, immigration and agriculture code into one position.