HON499_Fall2025_Moon Library Instruction_Harris: Andrew

While politicians and pundits endlessly debate immigration policy, U.S. Border Patrol agents put their lives on the line to enforce immigration law. In a day's work, agents may catch a load of narcotics, apprehend groups of people entering the country illegally, and intercept a potential terrorist. Their days often include rescuing aliens from death by thirst or murder by border bandits, preventing neighborhood assaults and burglaries, and administering first aid to accident victims, and may involve delivering an untimely baby or helping stranded motorists. As Bill Broyles and Mark Haynes sum it up, "Border Patrol is a hero job," one that too often goes unrecognized by the public. Desert Duty puts a human face on the Border Patrol. It features interviews with nineteen active-duty and retired agents who have worked at the Wellton, Arizona, station that watches over what is arguably the most perilous crossing along the border--a sparsely populated region of the Sonoran Desert with little water and summer temperatures that routinely top 110°F. The agents candidly discuss the rewards and frustrations of holding the line against illegal immigrants, smugglers, and other criminals--while often having to help the very people they are trying to thwart when they get into trouble in the desert. As one agent explains, "The thrill is tracking 'em up before they die. It's a rough ol' way to go--run outta water in this desert."

The government reports included in this book range from June to September 2018 and examine US border control and security. The first report is focused on the Department of Homeland Security. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was established by the Homeland Security Act of 2002 and began operations in 2003. This report examines the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Strategy, Policy and Plans as well as its Sub-Offices. The second report is an assessment of selected DHS components requirements infrastructure (such as Customs and Border Protection, Federal Emergency Management Agency, the US Coast Guard, and the US Citizenship and Immigration Services). It provides recommendations on additional practices that could help better develop operational requirements. Next, the southwest border of the United States has long been vulnerable to cross-border illegal activity. According to Border Patrol data, in Fiscal year 2017, Border Patrol agents apprehended 304,000 illegal entrants. Additionally, the US Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) spent approximately USD 2.3 billion between 2007 and 2015 to deploy physical barriers along the nearly 2,000-mile southwest border. In the third report, the progress DHS has made is examined as well as the challenges it has faced implementing its border security efforts. In January and March 2017, the President issues a series of executive orders related to border security and immigration. The fourth report included in this book reviews the agencies' implementation of the executive orders and related spending. Finally, the processes for tracking and unifying separated families are looked at and the progress and challenges in recruiting, hiring and retaining law enforcement personnel for US Customers and Border Protection is discussed in detail.