Engram Backtalk Says... "Take Your Pick America"

From Engram, a research professor and BACKTALK Blogger

For a while, McCain's slogan was "America First," which seemed to imply that Obama had a different philosophy.
Perhaps in response, Obama said this in his speech last night:
The times are too serious, the stakes are too high for this same partisan playbook. So let us agree that patriotism has no party. I love this country, and so do you, and so does John McCain. The men and women who serve in our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America - they have served the United States of America.So I've got news for you, John McCain. We all put our country first.
Well, we don't all put our country first, do we?
I mean, isn't fair to say that Obama's pastor of 20 years may not do that?
And isn't it fair to suggest that Obama's associate, William Ayers, doesn't always do that?
Let's be clear about this.
Obama is certainly not guilty by association.
That is, he does not damn America, he is not an anti-American American terrorist, and he does put America first (except, perhaps, that he plans to always seek the European seal of approval before taking any action).
The fact that he comfortably associates with people who don't put America first means nothing more than this: In 2007, these National Journal rankings show that Obama had the most liberal voting record in the Senate. That is, Barack Obama is on the far left end of the normal range of the political spectrum in America. But he is not a fringe leftist, like Ayers and Wright are. He is just closer to them, politically speaking, than a centrist or a conservative is. And the more to the left you lean, the less you are bothered by anti-Americanism (because you partially resonate to certain aspects of the anti-American message).
That's all.
Similarly, anti-American Europeans are more like Obama than Ayers and Wright. They lean far to the left, and they, too, would probably be less bothered by (and more willing to associate with) the likes of Bill Ayers and Reverend Wright than your Average American. Becasue they lean so far to the left, Europeans adore Barack Obama.
Why wouldn't they?
If you are on the left, you probably think that it is exceedingly unfair of me to discuss the anti-American views of Obama's associates.
But I don't know why.
I feel sure that you'd hold it against John McCain if he had worked closely with (or had long sought spiritual guidance from) an unrepentant abortion clinic bomber.
I'd hold it against him, too.
I'd take it as a sign that McCain, while not an anti-abortion terrorist himself, is nevertheless so extreme in his views that he is comfortable aligning himself with right-wing wackos.
That is, it would be an indication that McCain leans very, very far to the right.

In the same way, Obama's past associations, like the National Journal rankings, suggest that Obama leans very, very far to the left.
Related to this, Obama also had this to say in his speech:
But the record's clear: John McCain has voted with George Bush ninety percent of the time. Senator McCain likes to talk about judgment, but really, what does it say about your judgment when you think George Bush has been right more than ninety percent of the time? I don't know about you, but I'm not ready to take a ten percent chance on change.

Well, a McCain victory would be a 10% move in the liberal direction (not in the conservative direction). According to the National Journal, Obama voted the liberal way 65 out of 66 times in 2007, which is why he earned the title of being the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate (with Biden coming in 3rd). Thus, our choice for president is between John McCain, who will move away from Bush by about 10% in the liberal direction, or Barack Obama, who will move us 98% in the liberal direction.
That's your choice America;
take your pick.

McCain Makes Bold VP Pick, Game Over

I must admit, John McCain has some pretty sharp cookies working for him. The TV ad's have taken a direct but humorous tone using Hillary and Jihad Joe Biden's own words against Obama.
But selecting Sarah Palin as his VP seems to be sheer genius.

According to both Democrat advisor Susan Estridge and Fox News liberal host Gretta Van Sustren last week... "If McCain selects a woman as his VP running mate ...cha-ching, ...it's over for Obama".

Cha-ching.
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DNC Report: Day Two- Hillary

In her speech last night, we learned that Hillary Clinton is proud to be a mom, proud to be a Senator, proud to be a Democrat, proud to support O'mama and proud to be a lot of things... however, one thing she did not mention that she is proud of?

Being BJ Clinton's wife.
I'm just sayin'.
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Obama's Friend/America's Enemy

From National Review Online
Have you ever been a friend or business associate of a terrorist?
Not someone who, to your shock and horror, turned out secretly to have bombed government buildings.
No, the question is whether you’ve ever befriended an unreconstructed radical whose past was well known to you when you entered his orbit and walked through doors he opened for you.

Have you been chummy with an unapologetic terrorist who, years after you’d known and worked closely with him, was still telling the New York Times he regretted only failing to carry out more attacks — and that America still “makes me want to puke”?
Barack Obama has.

An organization called the American Issues Project, backed by Dallas investor Harold Simmons, is running a campaign ad which highlights Obama’s troubling relationship with William Ayers.

Ayers is a former member of the Weathermen terrorist organization that bombed the Pentagon, the U.S. Capitol, various police headquarters, and other targets in the early 1970s.

The Obama campaign’s rejoinder is three-pronged:
The first shot was an Obama response ad, which fails to offer any substantive explanation of why Obama maintains ties to Ayers. Obama’s second move was to launch a heavy-handed effort to pressure television stations into rejecting the ad by promising financial retaliation against the stations and their advertisers — which effort has apparently succeeded in intimidating Fox and CNN.
The capper is a desperate call for the Justice Department to muzzle political speech through the prospect of a criminal investigation — a demand that provides a disturbing sneak peak into what life would be like under an Obama Justice Department.Needless to say, none of this is justified.
If Obama has a good explanation for his ties to Ayers, he ought to give it. In the meantime, raising questions about that relationship is entirely legitimate.

Obama’s campaign has acknowledged that the candidate and Ayers are friends.

Though Obama has more recently minimized Ayers as “just a guy who lives in my neighborhood,” it is clear that the relationship was much deeper than that.
Ayers and his fellow-terrorist wife, Bernadine Dohrn (who has spoken admiringly of the infamous Manson Family murders), are icons in Chicago’s hard-left circles, to which Obama sought entrée as a young “community organizer.” In 1995, they hosted a fundraiser that helped launch his career in Chicago politics.Ayers has never abandoned his indictment of America as an imperialist hotbed of racism and economic exploitation.
He has merely shifted methods from violent extortion to academic indoctrination. Through his perch as a professor of education at the University of Illinois, he has been a ceaseless critic of the criminal-justice system (he is essentially opposed to imprisoning even the most violent criminals) and a proponent of what he calls “education reform” but what is actually the use of the classroom to proselytize for the Left’s political agenda.
Writing in the Chicago Tribune in 1997, Obama called A Kind and Just Parent, Ayers’ polemic on the Chicago court system, “a searing and timely account.”
Michelle Obama, then a dean at the University of Illinois, invited Ayers to participate in a panel with her husband, then a state senator who, the program explained, was “working to block proposed legislation that would throw more juvenile offenders into the adult system.”

Obama apologists dismiss all this as “guilt by association” based on a single joint appearance. But it was far from the only one. In fact, by 1997 Obama and Ayers were collaborators on a far more significant level. They sat together for several years on the board of the Woods Fund, a left-wing Chicago charitable organization. There, they doled out tens of thousands of dollars to such beneficiaries as the Trinity Church (where Obama was a longtime member and where another Obama mentor, Jeremiah Wright, preached a radical, anti-American brand of Black Liberation Theology) and the Arab American Action Network (co-founded by Rashid Khalidi, a Yasser Arafat apologist who has supported attacks against Israel and now directs Columbia University’s notorious Middle East Institute, founded by Edward Said).

Even more intriguing, in 1995 Ayers won a $49.2 million grant from the Annenberg Foundation — matched two-to-one by public and private contributions — to promote “reform” in the Chicago school system. He quickly brought in Obama, then all of 33 and bereft of any executive experience, to chair the board. With Ayers directing the project’s operational arm and Obama overseeing its financial affairs until 1999, the Chicago Annenberg Challenge distributed more than $100 million to ideological allies with no discernible improvement in public education. Until this week, moreover, the University of Illinois at Chicago, where Ayers works, was blocking access to the project’s files (examination of which was being sought by frequent National Review contributor Stanley Kurtz), until finally relenting under public pressure. Less than three months from Election Day, analysis of the records from Barack Obama’s only significant executive experience is just beginning.The mainstream media has been derelict on the Obama/Ayers relationship.
Perhaps now, finally, it will get the scrutiny it deserves.

Make Mine McCain/Hunter Please

I found this interesting piece and thought it deserved a re-post here...

Night of the Hunter
by D.R. Tucker — 05-28-2008 @ 03:00 AM
Reader Comments (21)
Mitt Romney. Charlie Crist. Bobby Jindal. Mike Huckabee. We’ve heard these names as possible running mates for John McCain. However, there’s another name that should be on this list—and it’s ridiculous that his name hasn’t been offically suggested yet.Not so long ago, California Congressman Duncan Hunter was seen as the true conservative choice for the Republican nomination. Hunter had served the country with honor during his 27-year tenure in the House of Representatives, working tirelessly to advance conservative principles and remaining loyal to the Reagan vision.Unfortunately, Hunter was unable to conquer his competitors for the Republican nomination. Despite gaining support from prominent conservative commentators and bloggers, Hunter was forced out of the race in January. However, the closed door of the Presidency could—and should--lead to the open window of the Vice Presidency. If McCain wants to ensure his election in November, he must seriously consider offering the VP slot to Hunter.A McCain-Hunter ticket would easily be as formidable as the Bush-Cheney ticket of 2000, if not the Reagan-Bush ticket of 1980. McCain and Hunter would have the skills and experience needed to lead America out of the political frustration and anxiety of the late-2000s. The conservative movement is suffering from a near-terminal case of Bush Disappointment Syndrome: a McCain-Hunter ticket would bring health and strength back to the right. Having a solid conservative like Hunter by his side would also diminish assertions that McCain would spend his entire Presidency as the Democrat Party’s love interest. If McCain vowed that Hunter would play a critical decision-making role in his administration, would that not slam shut the complaining mouths of Rush Limbaugh and Laura Ingraham?Hunter would make a fine Vice President. He has been to the House of Representatives what the late Sydney Pollack was to Hollywood: a rare example of class in an institution known for its modern-day shamelessness. Hunter, a Vietnam veteran, has continued the good fight during his years in Congress, standing up for the rights of unborn children, those concerned about border security and those who believe in a strong national defense. He is arguably the perfect conservative, an unimpeachable example of how to maintain Reagan’s principles in a post-Reagan era. Hunter is intelligent and charismatic enough to survive left-wing smear jobs. They can’t lay a glove on him: he has Thomas Sowell’s political vision and Dwight Eisenhower’s character. The left will try to attack a McCain-Hunter ticket as a warmonger’s fantasy, but that tactic won’t work: if anything, a ticket comprised of two veterans will be more likely to pursue legitimate peace.A McCain-Hunter ticket makes patriotism a campaign issue without having to even utter the word. The visual contrast will be profound: a ticket with two men who bled and sacrificed for this country versus a ticket led by a man who seemingly scorns the Pledge of Allegiance, a ticket with two men who love America versus a ticket led by a man whose closest confidant urged divine damnation upon the country, a ticket with two men who believe in America’s greatness versus a ticket led by a man who thinks we provoke other nations’ anger with our alleged hyper-materialism. In other words, it will be a ticket for adults versus a ticket for adolescents. McCain can only win this election if he convinces Americans that he is the only serious choice for President. Hunter will aid McCain in this mission. Rightly or wrongly, a majority of Americans now feel that Bush and Cheney have incompetently governed this country. A McCain-Hunter ticket will tell Americans that the competence and leadership they believe is currently absent from Washington will soon return.Whose votes would McCain lose by choosing Hunter? Moderates and independents might not go for a McCain-Huckabee ticket because of Huckabee’s strong social conservatism, and they might scorn a McCain-Jindal ticket because of Jindal’s youth, but it’s hard to see them giving thumbs-down to a McCain-Hunter partnership. McCain and Hunter would also appeal to Democrats skeptical of Obama—and as recent primary results show, such Democrats are more numerous than Obama’s die-hard supporters care to admit.McCain ought to think about making Hunter the co-captain of his Presidential ship. He is trustworthy, bright, hardworking, a big-picture thinker, a man of honor. He is more than ready to assume the Presidential reigns if necessary. The electorate is hungry for something different—and a McCain-Hunter ticket would provide voters with a delicious appetizer, main course and dessert, as opposed to the unpalatable slop Obama is offering.

DNC Convention Update- Day 1

Well, on the first day of the big Democrat Convention here in Denver we learned that the Kennedy's all love Barack Hussein Obama and that Michelle Obama decided that she suddenly loves Hillary Clinton and that she suddenly loves America.
It's a virtual love-fest... lol
That is all.
-red

Red Stater In Denver for the big Obamarama

Here I am in beautiful Denver Colorado to give you the latest and greatest flubs and stubs from the Democrat Convention.
There should be a neverending supply!

First up is Denver's "big blue bear" costing nearly 1/2 million dollars, this "work of art" is several stories tall and is moved (at an unknown taxpayer expense) around from building to building peering in the windows. According to Denver's illustrious mayor John Higgenlooper "the big blue bear" has many hidden meanings.

The only meaning I can see, isn't hidden at all,... it's just a retarded idea.

Democrat For Jihad Of The Day: Joe Biden For VP

Obama picks "Jihad Joe Biden" for his veep? This is too good to be true for conservatives!
How did Joe Biden get the nickname "Jihad Joe"?
By supporting the Jihad in a speech in Syria during the Petraeus hearings of course.
He could NOT have been more wrong, but the lefty media gives him a pass... of course.
LINK to JIHAD JOE BIDEN

Obama: No Walls, No rich-No poor, No Borders, One Religion

“The greatest danger of all is to allow new walls to divide us from one another.
The walls between old allies on either side of the Atlantic cannot stand.
The walls between the countries with the most and those with the least cannot stand.
The walls between races and tribes; natives and immigrants; Christian and Muslim and Jew cannot stand.
These now are the walls we must tear down.”
Barack Obama in Berlin


No "new walls to divide us from one another"... so can we take this to mean Obama does not support securing our borders with a fence or otherwise?
No borders either?
"Walls between countries with the most and countries with the least"... so Israel must let it's enemies waltz right in?
America must allow illegal immigrants to flood across our borders in spite of our laws?
"Walls between races and tribes"... So, Native American tribes are not to be allowed to be seperate or have differences under Obama rule?
And according to the almost black one, we must all come together in one big religion? And what religion would that be...
Just wondering.

Nobel Peace Prize... The Rest Of The Story

Have you heard the story about the runner-up for the Nobel Peace Prize?

Irena Sendlerowa 1910-2008
May 12 marked the death of a 98-year-old lady named Irena.

During WWII, Irena received permission from the Nazis to work in the Warsaw ghetto as a plumbing/sewer specialist.She had an ulterior motive...Being German, she knew the Nazis' plans for the Jews and smuggled infants out in the bottom of the large tool box she carried.

Larger children were placed in a burlap sack in the back of her truck. Also in the back was a dog that she had trained to bark each time the Nazi guards allowed her out of the ghetto and back in.The soldiers, of course, wanted nothing to do with the dog, and its barking covered any noise made by the infants and small children Irena managed to smuggle out approximately 2,500 children before she was finally caught.
When she was captured, the Nazis beat her severely, breaking both he r arms and her legs. Irena kept a record of the names of all the children she smuggled out of that Warsaw ghetto and kept them in a glass jar buried under a tree in her back yard.

After the war, she tried to locate any parents who may have survived so she might reunite the child with its family. Most, of course, did not survive the Holocaust, and the vast majority of the surviving children were placed in foster homes or adopted.

Last year Irena was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, but she lost to Al Gore, who won the award for presenting a slide show on Global Warming which turned out to be filled with bad data, falsehoods and outright lies.

TEST: WHO ARE THE REAL RACISTS?

Which political party (Democrats or Republicans) has done more for civil rights and the rights of minorities and which party has stood in the way and prevented equal rights at every opportunity?

Take this test to find out.

NEWS MEDIA "IN THE TANK" FOR OBAMA

Even the Washington Post admits it... FULL STORY.

And what happens class when a newspaper actually does present a view different from the Democrat party line?
All opposing views are to be discredited as right wing propaganda, but leftwing propaganda is promoted as legitimate news by bloggers like OKIE FUNK and others like him.

Isn't it about time we put the media back in it's (their) place?

THE COST OF WAR

Engram at BACK TALK blog has posted another excellent piece, providing perspective on the COST OF WAR.
Well worth the read as are all of Engram's posts... particularly on Iraq.
Thanks to Engram for the great work.

Obama's Energy Policy Over Inflated

This past week Obama suggested we all inflate the tires on our cars and thereby end the so-called energy crisis and bring down the price of gasoline at the pump.

Overinflating your tires can certainly reduce the rolling resistance of your car and slightly improve fuel economy. But as this story points out, the results in terms of oil savings would be less than significant.
Unfortunately overinflating your tires will certainly reduce the surface area for braking and cornering also, thereby making your car less safe for yourself and other motorists.

A car with overinflated tires cannot stop in the same distance as a car with properly inflated tires, nor can it corner as well on average, although it will stiffen the sidewall of the tire giving the driver the feeling of more stability... to a point.

Hitting rocks, objects and potholes in the road can do more damage to a overinflated tire. Your tires will need to be replaced more often as they will wear out faster from running on a smaller surface area of the tire. Overinflating your tires will ruin your tires just like underinflating them.

The "not ready for prime time" presidential candidate Obama also said getting a tune-up on our cars would have more impact than drilling for oil. Even it they don't need a tune-up Senator?

So, lets review.
Obama's big plan to reduce our dependance on foreign oil is to make our cars less safe and more expensive to drive... BRILLIANT!

Obama Not African American As He Claims

Imagine for a minute that if President George Bush were 1/8th Cherokee and claimed to be the "FIRST Native American Indian" President. Just imagine the outcry from the media and press. Ohh the outrage we would see.

Barack Hussein Obama is predominately WHITE (50%) and secondarily ARAB (43.75%), he is only 6.25% African American on his fathers side, but to be legally considered of a particular race (as in for minority status) one must be at least 12.5%.

Obama lied to people in Illinois to get elected as a black congressman, lied to get elected as a black senator and is now lying to try and get elected as the first African American President when in truth he isn't legally African American at all.

Now, why wouldn't B Hussein O want to be called the first ARAB president?
That is truly what he would be, if elected.

If B Hussein is willing to lie and trick voters into believing he is an African American and not Arab, what else is he willing to lie to us about?
His religion for instance...
His agenda for example...
His true intentions.

Young Americans are sucking these lies from Obama up like they were chocolate.. err I mean vanilla pudding.
mmmm, mmmm good.
Full story and details here

Tourists Cheer GOP in House Chamber over Energy Issue

Democrats go on excellent vacation, Pelosi goes on her book tour, while Americans want results on high gas prices. Democrats answer to American voters?.... "drop dead".

Wednesday, August 06, 2008
By Penny Starr, Senior Staff Writer
CNS News.com
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)
Washington (CNSNews.com) – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has the power to shut off microphones and still video cameras, but that has not stopped House Republicans – and a steady stream of Capitol Hill visitors – from gathering in the House chamber for a third day on Tuesday for what seemed like a pep rally for energy independence. “Nancy Pelosi has said no to a vote on a comprehensive energy bill,” said Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-Colo.) before the rest of her words were drowned out by booing from the crowd. “Madam Speaker, get off your book tour …” Musgrave’s words were again lost as the crowd cheered, repeating the standing ovation given to speakers who came before and after her. The crowd chanted “vote, vote, vote,” in response to remarks by members who spoke, including Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), Mike Pence (R-Ind.) and John Shadegg (R-Ariz.). Shadegg spoke in front of a sign that said, “Nancy Pelosi, We’re Here, Where are You?” and another that listed the benefits of energy independence: more jobs, improved national security and lower prices at the pump.
Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-Colo.)
“I find it incredible that the American public can’t hear what’s going on in the House of Representatives because Nancy Pelosi chose to turn off the lights and microphones rather than have an up-or-down vote on a comprehensive energy plan,” Musgrave told CNSNews.com. “Nancy Pelosi is on a book tour,” said Musgrave. “She’s jetting around this country. She’s on a five-week vacation. The American people can’t afford a vacation, many of them. Nancy Pelosi needs to call this house back into session, and we need an up-or-down vote on energy policy.” “Madam Speaker, what are you afraid of? Give us a vote,” Musgrave said. Pelosi issued a statement Monday saying the protest, which started Friday after the official adjournment of Congress, lacked credibility. “This Republican hoax is unworthy of the serious debate we must have to reduce the price at the pump and promote energy independence,” Pelosi said. She said a Republican plan to “give away public lands to Big Oil” will not immediately reduce prices at the pump, and it would save Americans “only 2 cents ten years from now.”Musgrave spoke to CNSNews.com as visitors to Capitol Hill filed in and out of the house chamber, many of them through the “members only” cloak room. Edward Galgano, a U.S. citizen who lives with his wife and children in England, was with his family on the floor of the House chamber on Tuesday. “It was pretty exciting to get on the floor to see it live,” Galgano told CNSNews.com. “I like the idea that (Republican House members) are raising the questions. I think (energy) is very important to the American people right now. Galgano did not, however, like the fact that the cameras were off in the chamber. “I disagree completely,” he said. “I think it’s terrible.” Jennifer Hickman of Florida did not know about the protest when she planned her visit, but she told CNSNews.com that she was glad she had the chance to take part. “I was surprised there was no media coverage, there were no cameras on so people can understand what’s going on in our government,” Hickman said, adding that she supported drilling for oil off the Florida coast. “My understanding is that it’s going to be 50 miles out and not something that is obtrusive on nature in terms of the environment – so I’m for it.” Mae Milton of Matthews, N.C., said the scene in the House chamber reminded her of her favorite movie. “It’s just like ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,’” Milton said.

Terrorist Attacks In Iraq Down 85% From One Year Ago

General: Iraq needs long-term US military help

By ANNE FLAHERTY – Jul 9, 2008
Washington (AP)—

The general who led efforts to train Iraq's army and police units said Wednesday that progress is mixed and long-term U.S. help is needed.
Army Lt. Gen. James Dubik said Iraq's security forces have grown from 444,000 to 566,000 since he assumed command of the Multi-National Security Transition Command in June 2007 and they are better able to execute operations on their own.
But the fast-growing force still lacks experienced leaders and the ability to train all its new recruits, Dubik told the House Armed Services Committee.
"As I often said to my command in Baghdad, `Progress doesn't result in no problems, it results in new problems,'" he said in his written testimony.
The war, now in its sixth year, is an important issue in the presidential election and the progress of Iraq's security forces is seen as necessary to help smooth a U.S. exit.
Republicans and Democrats said they were eager to see Iraqi security forces take more control.
"The ability of the Iraqi forces to move out and accomplish a mission in a professional manner I think is a lot of concern to us," said Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, the committee's top Republican.
Dubik, who is retiring after 37 years of service, said he can't estimate exactly when the Iraqis will be able to take control of the country because many factors — such as aircraft purchases — are undecided. When pressed by panel chairman Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., the general said he does expect Iraqi ground forces to be operating proficiently by the middle of next year, possibly as early as April.
"Our assistance may change in organization and size, to be sure. But some form of partnership and assistance, consistent with our two nations' strategic objectives, in my opinion, is still necessary," he told the committee.
The Iraqi military said Wednesday that the number of "terrorist attacks" in June declined 85 percent from the same period a year ago. Despite the security gains, frequent attacks continue throughout the country.
When Dubik testified before Congress in January, he said Iraq was on track to reach some 580,000 security force members by the end of the year but that the forces still were a long way from becoming self-sufficient. Iraqi officials estimated to him that the country probably would not be able to assume responsibility for internal security until sometime between 2009 and 2012, or defend its borders before 2018, he said.
In his testimony Wednesday, Dubik recommended streamlining laws and rules that he said have delayed U.S. military equipment purchases by Iraq. Iraq has ordered $2.7 billion in equipment, but received just $1.4 billion, he wrote.
Army Lt. Gen. Frank Helmick assumed control of the U.S. training command last week.

Duncan Hunter Still Working On America's Border Fence

While Barack Hussein and John McCain are parading around the country (and other countries) trying to get votes by making promises, Duncan Hunter is actually out there getting stuff done. Here are a couple of recent stories about the former Presidential hopeful and his never-quit attitude.
-red

By Leslie Berestein
San Diego UNION-TRIBUNE
July 29, 2008

Crews could begin filling in Smuggler's Gulch as early as this week for the border-fence construction project that environmentalists had opposed for years.
Click to see Proposed, existing fencing graphic.
The gulch is a deep canyon west of the San Ysidro port of entry. Yesterday, Reps. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, and Brian Bilbray, R-Carlsbad, held a news conference there to announce the expected start of the cut-and-fill phase.
“This is the last hole in the border fence,” Hunter said. “It's important to get this done.”
Earth-scraping equipment was scheduled to arrive yesterday, he said. A Border Patrol spokesman later confirmed that the contractor handling the fence project is obtaining more equipment.
The federal government plans to build an earthen berm across the canyon to support a 15-foot, secondary steel-mesh fence as well as patrol and access roads. The government will need to fill the canyon with more than 2 million cubic yards of dirt.
Hunter's aides said the cut-and-fill operation would be in full swing by Aug. 11, with about 22,000 cubic yards of earth moved per day.
This year, the government awarded a $48.6 million contract for the fence work to Kiewit Corp., a construction and mining company based in Omaha, Neb. The corporation has been preparing the site in recent months.
Government officials expect to finish the fence project by May 1.
The scale of the work has drawn widespread criticism from environmentalists, who fear that sediment from the earth-moving operation will harm the Tijuana River estuary. The estuary is an internationally recognized wetlands area that has cost millions of dollars to restore.

ALSO-
$42Mil Border Fence Construction Under Way!
Area Considered Notorious For Smuggling
POSTED: 2:40 pm PDT July 28, 2008
UPDATED: 5:32 pm PDT July 28, 2008

SAN DIEGO -- After more than a decade of delays, construction is getting under way on a 3-mile stretch of border fencing.
View Images Watch Video
The double fencing stretches from the ocean at Border Field State Park into Smuggler’s Gulch, which empties into the Tijuana River Valley on the U.S. side of the border. That area has historically been San Diego's most heavily trafficked border stretch, in terms of illegal immigrants, drugs and criminal activity, officials said. Just last week, Border Patrol agents took 49 illegal immigrants into custody in that area after they were found hiding in the tank of a stolen water truck.
The first phase of the fencing project is already ongoing -- floodworks. A big box culvert and rip-rap boulders to protect the fences and the access road between them from storm runoff.
Starting later this week, the contractors will begin bulldozing 2 million cubic yards off the top of the mesas to accommodate all that. Fourteen miles of double-fencing has gone up to the east of Smuggler's gulch since 1996.
"Every family in America that's been touched by the tragedy of illegal drugs or by criminal activity that's come from across the border has as stake in this border fence," said Rep. Duncan Hunter.
But federal regulations and environmental lawsuits have delayed work on the coastal stretch to the west, until Hunter pushed through a waiver of those laws, exercised by the Department of Homeland Security. He argued that the project won't be the environmental disaster that critics have claimed.
"This plan has gotten past, it's been approved by the Carlsbad office of Fish and Wildlife -- which is considered to be the toughest Fish & Wildlife office in the nation. So it's an ecologically and environmentally sensitive plan. It's a good one," said Hunter.
According to Hunter, San Diego County's crime rate has gone down by 53 percent since the 14 miles of existing double-fencing went up along the border. He said that barriers of one kind or another now stretch for about 50 the county's 70 miles of border.

More on the Border...
August 5, 2008: Feds Rescue Smuggled Toddlers
May 8, 2008: Illegal Immigrants Arrested While Leaving U.S.
May 2, 2008: May Day Marchers Hit San Diego Streets
November 8, 2007: GOP Irked At Democrats Slashing Funds For Border-Fence Bill
August 14, 2007: Presidential Hopeful Tours Border