"The damage these illegals commit is minimal compared to what they contribute," said Borane, who is chairman of a group of U.S. mayors on the Mexican border. "This country can absorb these people. They are producers. Their children can become productive citizens."
Gov. Napolitano, however, said the federal government was not doing nearly enough to protect the state. She declared an emergency in four border counties, among them Cochise, which includes Douglas. Days earlier, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson had made a similar declaration in his state.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Tuesday August 30, 2005 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 44 words Type of Material: Correction
Arizona border town -- A photo caption that accompanied an article in Friday's Section A about undocumented border crossers in Douglas, Ariz., incorrectly described the location of a U.S. Border Patrol supervisor. The supervisor was standing in a drainage pipe, not a drainage ditch.
The governors, both Democrats, declared emergencies to release additional state and federal funding for immigration enforcement.
"The rule of law has become victim, and the people who are experiencing it the most are those communities along the border," Napolitano said in an interview. "It is a very, very big problem for us."
U.S. Border Patrol agents don't agree with the governor that they are not increasing enforcement or with the mayor that immigration cannot be controlled.
Border Control Chief David V. Aguilar said his agency had made significant progress in stanching the flow of illegal immigrants in the Tucson sector, which includes Douglas. By a wide margin, the Tucson sector ranks as the largest gateway for illegal immigration on the U.S.-Mexican border.
In the Tucson sector, agents have apprehended more than 400,000 illegal immigrants since October -- several times more than any other border sector. Apprehension is down 10% from the year ending last October, which the Border Patrol says reflects the deterrent effect of its enforcement.
Given those figures and what he calls an improving quality of life in Douglas, Aguilar says, "I wouldn't call it an emergency."
The Border Patrol has a massive presence in Douglas, with a gleaming new station and about 500 agents and 100 administrative employees to patrol 53 miles of the border.
In addition, it is equipped with more than 200 SUVs, trucks, vans and Jeeps, as well as horses, dogs, scooters and an armory of high-powered automatic weapons. Twenty years ago, the station had just 30 agents.
It has installed stadium-style lights and scores of cameras on towers along the border, able to zoom in on people in the brush from a mile away. A network of seismic sensors linked to the command center warns of footsteps.
