President George W. Bush pushed back Tuesday against concerns that his plan to send up to 6,000 National Guard troops to the US-Mexico border would weaken the country's broader military commitments.
Speaking at a White House press conference after talks with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, Bush said the deployment would not burden efforts to fight terrorism or respond to natural disasters. He added that his administration would coordinate with state governors to avoid placing undue pressure on Guard units.
Bush had outlined the border security initiative in a nationally televised address the previous evening, calling for the troops to begin arriving as early as the following month.
Democratic lawmakers voiced skepticism, arguing that the US military is already stretched thin by ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Senior officials from the Defense Department and the Department of Homeland Security held briefings Tuesday to explain the details of the proposal.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in May 2006, in its own words.