(Part 11) GAO Presentation On Internal DHS Checkpoints

Part 11 of a 14 part video series highlighting a town hall meeting organized by Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords appears above. The meeting was held on September 2, 2009 in Green Vally, Arizona to discuss/debate a recent GAO report on internal suspicionless homeland security checkpoints.

In this video, three members of the audience share their thoughts regarding the proposed permanent Homeland Security checkpoint being planned for Southern Arizona’s I-19 South of Tucson. Of special note is Chief Gilbert’s feigned outrage after being accused of not listening to community concerns regarding the proposed checkpoint. To show just how much concern he has, Gilbert assured the speaker the community will have a say in the type of facade used at the checkpoint. Video highlights appear below:

  • Raymond with the Good Shephard United Church of Christ rose first to speak. He indicated the GAO report reinforced the observation that the Border Patrol has always intended to erect a permanent checkpoint along I-19, regardless of feedback or concerns from local communities.
  • Raymond went on to state the Border Patrol is never satisfied. It always claims it just needs one more thing to gain operational control of the border but after it gets what it wants, it’s never enough. When will it end?
  • Raymond accuses the Border Patrol of reactive planning, inadequate oversight, inconsistent data gathering procedures and no regard for community concerns.
  • Chief Gilbert responds with feigned outrage stating that:

    “we’re also going to continue working with the community as we go forward with this process for site, ahhh, for design of the facility, the facade, things like that so I do think we listen to the community.”

    In other words, Gilbert couldn’t care less about community backlash regarding the erection of a permanent checkpoint but shows how much he cares by seeking feedback on the color of the facade.

  • Representative Giffords speaks and asks that the remaining speakers from the audience limit their comments to one minute in the interests of time.
  • Elyse Golob, Executive Director of the National Center for Border Security and Immigration, rises to speak next. She inquires as to a performance metric that would speak to the overall performance of Border Patrol efforts as opposed to metrics that assist with unit level operations.
  • GAO representative Stana responds by indicating a reliable metric is based upon a numerator and denominator. He goes on to say that Customs Inspectors assure this with a program called COMPEX where individuals who would normally be allowed through without a detailed inspection are instead inspected to see what would have otherwise missed. Stana indicates such an approach may be difficult at internal checkpoints because the legal authority to search inside the country doesn’t exist absent consent or probable cause (although he doesn’t admit this in so many words).
  • Marshal from Tubac is the final speaker in this video and asks why the SBInet, enforcers located between the border and checkpoints, aren’t being used more effectively to interdict illegal traffic. Marshal also asks why ADOT, the Arizona Department of Transportation, can’t be managed better to be more cooperative to Border Patrol demands. Obviously, Marshal is under the mistaken impression that State agencies must bow down to the demands of federal agencies. Finally, Marshal indicates he would prefer the interim checkpoint be located at kilometer post 42 instead of 41

This sums up part 11. Part 12 to follow shortly.

Links to all parts of this special report appear below: