http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/knau/local-knau-913669.mp3
Phoenix, AZ – In May the president promised to deploy 12-hundred Guard
soldiers. Since that time the Pentagon said 524 of them are going
to be stationed in Arizona. At a press conference in Washington,
National Guard Bureau Chief Gen. Craig McKinley said he doesn't
expect them to be at full strength, at least not right away.
(We believe that we'll be fully ready through the month of August
as we ramp up. But surely by September we should have our whole
forces in the field, working with our partners.)
But that's not the whole story. Lt. Col. Robert Ditchey said
Arizona won't have its full complement of soldiers until October
-- and then, only for about four months.
(It ramps up prior to that time, holds at kind of that high peak,
and then will ramp down to June 30 when is the end of this
support, this temporary bridge.)
The soldiers are not expected to be actually out looking for
illegal immigrants but instead supposed to provide support for
intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance. They will be armed,
but only for self defense. In the interim, the president is
pressing Congress for an extra $500 million he hopes to get for
other programs, including 1,000 new Border Patrol officers, half
of which would be assigned to this state. For Arizona Public
Radio this is Howard Fischer.