TB traveler update: CBP official retires amid uproar
posted at 6:40 pm on November 5, 2007 by Bryan
We’ve been following this Washington Times story for a few weeks now: A Mexican man infected with a particularly nasty form of tuberculosis crossed the border at least 76 times, flew on aircraft, and met with people here in the US on business. Now comes word that a TSA CBP official who figures into the story has announced his retirement.
The federal official in charge of the El Paso border crossing — where a Mexican national with a highly contagious form of tuberculosis was allowed to enter the U.S. 76 times since August 2006 — has announced his retirement.
Luis Garcia, director of field operations in El Paso, said his retirment is not related to a Senate inquiry as to how Amado Isidro Armendariz Amaya traveled more than 20 times into the U.S. after his illness was discovered by health authorities on April 16.
He announced his retirement last week; it takes effect next week. A few senators are calling for an investigation into how the man was able to cross the border so many times after an alert was put out to be on the lookout for him.
Blowback
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I quote Cartman from the end of the ginger episode.
“Oh nothing, nothing, totally unrelated.”
Right…………….
Hawkins1701 on November 5, 2007 at 6:43 PM
This bumbling idiot ( or worse, i err on the side of deceny for fear of banning) will get a full pension and retire in style after being an abject failure in his position. I would prefer an investigation and charges if so determined, but that obviously won’t happen now.
bbz123 on November 5, 2007 at 6:54 PM
Has anyone ever found out what his business in the US entailed? Maybe Drug Smuggling? Or is it unbecoming to ask such questions?
PappaMac on November 5, 2007 at 7:03 PM
You mean they put this guy’s name on a list and no magical Homeland Security(tm) force field descended to securely and comprehensively provide a solution to his illegal entrance into our country?
I would never have believed it if I hadn’t heard it from Bryan first…
Ochlan on November 5, 2007 at 7:20 PM
just one resignation?
no more heads to roll?
madmonkphotog on November 5, 2007 at 7:51 PM
Any plans to change the title to accurately reflect the situation? The TSA gets dumped on enough without having to take the blame for this idiot as well.
Shivv on November 5, 2007 at 7:57 PM
This guy was completely simpatico with the Bush administration’s open borders agenda. But when that led to embarrassing headlines — under the bus, Garcia!
The obvious problem at DHS is Chertoff, but he’s a pet of Bush’s — a crony of Giuliani, who is Karl Rove’s pick for ’08 — so he never takes the blame.
Ali-Bubba on November 5, 2007 at 8:13 PM
The problem with an investigation is that it will be a PC one with multiple uncivil rights groups keeping every detail under a magnifying glass.
Speakup on November 5, 2007 at 9:16 PM
To project into the future – at what point do we have to have on our persons a copy of a health report, along with driver’s license and/or passport to board an aircraft? I’d go for it now if I could be assured TSA was really screening for fraudulent documents or people that appear to be ill. Can any of us say, “pandemic”?
24K lady on November 5, 2007 at 9:17 PM
In addition to everything else, it seems the Americans had best begin having enough children to make up for the ones they will lose to contagious diseases.
Kralizec on November 5, 2007 at 11:26 PM
It’s only our side of the border, and probably way to few of them, that even consider TB and infectious diseases a problem.
THOUSANDS of illegals, and even legal workers, from south of the border bring horrible diseases into the US daily. The Mexican side just doesn’t care.
shooter on November 5, 2007 at 11:41 PM
There is a letter to the editor over at WND that says someone in government threatened employees with losing their job if this was leaked. I wonder if it was Garcia?
The letter writer also says members of the carriers family had died from TB. Nice.
Then there is the story of the chicken processors in Alabama where 212 of 765 workers tested positive for TB, with 165 of those yet to be evaluated to determine if they are contagious.
I still wonder if those who want open borders will only come to their senses when it is found the children of illegal aliens are in public schools with their children, and they have to get tested for TB because their parent(s) might have TB.
91Veteran on November 6, 2007 at 1:10 AM
The open borders crowd need to be isolated with Senor TB.
saved on November 6, 2007 at 6:50 AM
This is all a result of PC gone amok. Common sense, and rational thought combined with a government that obviously does not understand their function, nor how to perform their function.
MSGTAS on November 6, 2007 at 9:13 AM
I had heard about the workers in Alabama on the news this morning. (Used to live in Decatur, and this makes me sooo glad I’m not there anymore.) Here’s something scary:
I was curious about the correlation between TB cases and Hispanic population, so I did a little digging this morning. I started with the TB chart at Free Republic. Then went digging for the census data. When I got rid of some obvious outliers (Alaska, for example), I found a correlation of ~73% between states with high density / high Hispanic populations, and the reported rates of TB. Do we have to hit our government in the head with a brick for them to see this?!
lan astaslem on November 6, 2007 at 10:46 AM
Ah, it’s only the unwashed masses affected….
…besides, they need the illegal votes right?
91Veteran on November 6, 2007 at 1:00 PM