As US Border Patrol Problems Mount, UAVs considered

NM National Guard Give Insight On Day-To-Day Struggles

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Problems along the border are growing and the budget the New Mexico National Guard works with is shrinking.

Flying with the National Guard over the border is eye-opening.

Guardsmen have the daunting task of monitoring hundreds of miles of the desert border and how they manage it with dwindling resources.

It starts with a network of cameras placed along the border.

"We sometimes work in shifts. We gather surveillance," said Col. Richard Clark, with the N.M. National Guard.

The cameras are the eyes and ears of the desert, but the guard said more are needed.

Drug lords are finding new ways to evade border soldiers.

Smugglers get sneaky with how they bring drugs into the United States.

For example a tire was manufactured so that there is a compartment to fit the drugs inside the tire rim.

Worried about attacks from drug gangs, faces of the soldiers living and working on the border were not shown.

"The trunk: the forward part of the trunk, another popular place they like to create a false wall," said Clark.

The soldiers said in the last few years, smugglers desperation to get their drugs across is increasing and Clark spoke candidly about how desperate Mexican nationals are to get into America illegally.

"About 50 percent of the time we'll find children and families who want to bring their kids across," Clark said.

Clark said many times, by the time his troops find illegal crossers; they are dehydrated and severely sunburned.

"We'll first provide first aid for them. Let's face it, that's number one -- the humanitarian part," Clark said.

Another problem is that much of the U.S.-Mexico is separated by a barbed wire fence and the fence isn't maintained by the U.S. government, many times it's maintained by ranchers only making it easier for smugglers to find ways in.

The guard is constantly looking for ways to cut expenses.

New technology like an unmanned UAV plane is emerging and likely the future of drug surveillance. Operating it is far cheaper than adding manpower on the border.

The New Mexico National Guard's budget has been cut every year for the last 10 years.

"Our poor soldiers don't know if they will have a job at the end of the fiscal year," Clark said.

In the early 90s more than 250 full-time guard members manned the border, but today that number is down to 50.

"There are other competing priorities," Clark said.

An unsecured border and a dwindling budget is half the battle the guard faces. They also face new tactics everyday trying to outwit them.

Each year, guard leaders meet with New Mexico's congressional delegation.

Clark said they have to ask for supplemental income every year, but there is no guarantee Congress will give New Mexico that money.

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