Schwarzenegger to order troops to border

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger agreed Thursday to send the California National Guard to the Mexican border, ending a 17-day standoff with the Bush administration.

The two sides had been at odds over whether California Guardsmen would join the effort to bolster the Border Patrol and who would pay for it.

They reached an agreement under which California will contribute about 1,000 Guardsmen for border duty and the federal government will pick up the full cost, Schwarzenegger said.

"It is not my preference to send the National Guard, but there's an important need to protect the border," he said.

However, in a separate act that was not part of the agreement with the federal government, Schwarzenegger will sign an executive order that ends the California National Guard's participation on December 31, 2008, state officials said.

Schwarzenegger intends for the mission to be carried out mostly by troops who volunteer for six- to 12-month assignments. The Bush plan called for sending Guardsmen on border duty instead of their annual two-and-three week training exercises.

The state would have to pay for normal training sessions, while long-term assignments are funded by the federal government.

Altogether, President Bush has proposed sending 6,000 National Guardsmen to the U.S. border with Mexico. The overall cost of the multiyear deployment has been put at more than $1 billion.

In California, National Guard officials have said the mobilization could begin immediately.

A planning force could reach the border within days and the full deployment could be in place by July 15, but California Guard officials said they would not send anyone until Congress approves funding for the operation.

Schwarzenegger said he would sign a memorandum of understanding between the federal government and the governors of the four southern border states. It serves as a federal promise to repay the cost of the deployment.

It also establishes rules of engagement prohibiting Guardsmen from handling detainees, but allowing them to carry guns. The rules are similar to those the California Guard follows when deploying to a riot, officials said.

The document also contains a provision allowing the border governors to decline to participate in any part of the mission they deem inappropriate.

Schwarzenegger's decision ended an awkward period for the Republican governor. He held out longer than Democratic governors in Arizona and New Mexico before saying he would send troops.

He also had risked alienating voters in a state that has repeatedly backed a tough approach on immigration -- although his reluctance to send troops had been seen as popular among Hispanics.

Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano signed an agreement Thursday for her state to participate in Bush's plan, with 300 Arizona National Guard soldiers set to take part beginning in mid-June.

A spokesman for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said the governor signed the deal and was gearing up to deploy an advance team of planners by mid-June.

National Guard troops will be used for engineering, road and fence building, transportation, logistics and surveillance, reconnaissance and port-of-entry duties but not direct law enforcement.

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why does it cost $166,666 per soldier for them to secure the border. I mean they are not making that much money from being a soldier.

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Tank Sniper member #1: I am the founder

^ it's the equipment, rations, etc.

M16 50k, uniform, 35k, helmet 12k, rations 2$, seriously I dont see where they are spendingit all.

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Tank Sniper member #1: I am the founder

Isn't it obvious? They're spending it on da choppas.

Free choppa for all.

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Tank Sniper member #1: I am the founder

You'd better get to dat choppa before supplies run out!

hes gona go nazi on their ass.

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I'm not a Mongolian!!

IMPs (Individual Meal Packets) in the Canadian Forces were, according to the Bin Rats, worth about $22 apiece. MREs, the American versions (and tasteless without tobasco sauce) were allegedly more expensive.

Troops are expensive. Consider the following things that were provided, and replaced as required, to me over the course of my career:

- Travel to various bases, detachments, and research establishments within Canada
- Travel to Forts in the US during joint training exercises
- Accomodations on base
- Christmas and leave travel to and from my home town or other designated leave location
- Mess hall, boxed, and IMP meal
- 3 combat uniforms
- Summer and winter DEUs (dress uniforms)
- DEU overcoat and dress belt
- battle gear such as webbing, ruck sack, Kevlar helmet, etc.
- 3 pairs combat boots
- 2 pairs steel toed work boots
- 2 pairs Garrison steel toed boots
- 1 pair PT running shoes
- PT clothing
- 3 pairs coveralls
- 1 tool chest, fully stocked with wrenches, screwdrivers, percussion tools, scraping tools, etc.
- Combat uniform parka
- 3 Garrison shirts
- 1 Garrison sweater
- 3 pairs Garrison pants
- Combat fleece shirts, scarves, toques, and other winter garments
- Winter camoflauge oversuit, ruck cover, white balaclava, etc.
- White mukluks
- 3 Berets
- 1 C7 fixed stock 5.56mm automatic rifle (or C8 folding stock rifle as required)
- 1 1000m range scope
- 1 9mm Browning automatic pistol
- 1 C6 Section Assault machine gun as required
- Grenades, 5.56mm ball rifle ammo and 9mm pistol ammo as required

That's just basic kit, rations, quarters, and travel. Then there's:

- Basic Training
- 3 week Driver (wheeled) course, learning to drive everything from little Iltis runabouts to 6 wheel drive troop transports
- Driver (tracked) training, everything from tracked transports to Leopard II Main Battle Tanks
- Driver (airbrakes) training for everything from civvy pattern Semi Tractors to 10 ton, 6 wheel drive HLVW Wreckers - I still have the Class A endorsement on my civvy license
- years of in-classroom education and on-the-shop-floor practical training as electrical & mechanical engineer, vehicle specialist
-High Altitude Indoctrination (normally offered to Air Force, not Army, but I was posted to an air base during El Nino and had a few weeks down time, so they slotted me onto the course)
- Winter Indoc - how to survive, move, and fight in winter conditions including more than a week of constant exposure to sub-zero elements - we weren't even allowed to get into a warm vehicle cab.
- Rifle, pistol, and anti-tank weapons firing and marksmanship courses and regular testing
-Jump courses
- Survival training (similar to winter indoc, but under warmer conditions and without food rations)

that's just off the top of my head. I'm sure there are several others I'm forgetting due to the late hour. But it gives you an idea of all the little and not-so-little things that add up when it comes to calculating troop costs.

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your sig was 1.8mb

Can we also send the ones already here back? I know a soccer field where on a weekend you could round up about 5,000 of them easily.

You could use the big scooper trucks from Soylent Green to gather them up.

While we're on the subject, I almost got into a fight with a mexican last night. He was offering money to the attendant at the gas station for her phone number and holding up the whole line (about 10 people). I said something to him to the tune of hey lets move it. He turned around and asked "What? Are you mad because she look like your girlfriend?"
I told him I didnt have a girlfriend and he might want to watch his mouth. (He was shitfaced and buying another 12 pack of Modelo). He asked what I was going to do and I told him if he didnt shut his mouth, then I would punch him in it. He said he'd wait for me outside to whoop my ass and I found it pretty amusing.
I got outside and called my two friends who were waiting in the car to make sure he didn't have any people or anything of that nature, and the guy is calling me over to fight with his hand behind his back. Riiiiight.

I wasn't sure if he had a knife or what so I told the gas station attendant to call the cops, that I wasn't sure what this guy was planning on doing.

To wrap it up, "Cheech" (Alberto was his real name) got a warning earlier for a drunk in public, and it was just his luck that the cop that showed up happens to be a friend of mine. I told him what had happened, he cuffed him and took him in to jail.

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^ ahhaha thats ownage right there. was the chick hot? is she mexican too?

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I'm not a Mongolian!!

She was white, but I wouldn't take her number period. Sick...

The guy's face was so priceless. He was throwing his arms up at me and yelling "You want to see what Cheech can do?" "I'll knock you down."

Then a cop flies up in the parking spot between us with his lights on...priceless.

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I thought he had his hand behind his back?

Perhaps if you didn't act like such a tough guy, none of this would have happened.