9The US Department Of Homeland Security’s Secure Border Initiative, USA, Canada, And Mexico
The United States government has been looking for different ways to strengthen border security for decades. One example is former President George W. Bush’s “virtual wall.” The Department of Homeland Security had a plan known as the Secure Border Initiative.
The plan focused on the construction of a special network of security surveillance towers spanning both the Canadian and Mexican borders. Ground was broken back in 2006 on a 53-mile span of Arizona’s border. All too soon there were issues.
The first stage was not only beset with significant technical problems but went well over budget. During testing, the radar sensors installed in the towers were not able to differentiate between falling autumn leaves and human beings. By the time President Barack Obama’s administration halted work on the border security project sometime in 2011, a total of reportedly $1.15 billion had already been invested in the ill-fated effort to bolster border security.
(Continued on next page)
