Senator Gregg Supports Rice-Chertoff Joint Vision: Secure Borders and Open Doors in the Information Age

SENATOR GREGG SUPPORTS RICE-CHERTOFF JOINT VISION: SECURE BORDERS AND OPEN DOORS IN THE INFORMATION AGE

U.S. Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH), congratulates Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff for today proposing a plan to address secure borders in the 21st Century. The current system does not adequately integrate the Departments of State and Homeland Security and more importantly does not integrate effectively the law enforcement community.

Senator Gregg stated, "I am pleased the proposal is pursuing this effort on a phased basis so that programs and hardware can be tested, and long term investments are made only in those that work effectively. Most importantly, we must continue to question the development of U.S. VISIT, the program intended to track the entry and exit of all visitors to the U.S. While strides have been made in tracking the entry of visitors into the U.S., there is no plan to deploy comprehensive exit controls. U.S. VISIT is a significant technology initiative that will be key to any long-term, comprehensive tracking of people who come into and out of our country, yet its viability remains extremely suspect. The State Department has in recent years corrected and effectively upgraded its computer capabilities, and hopefully the Department of Homeland Security can be equally successful in this critical area."

http://gregg.senate.gov/press/2006/0117_rice-chertoff_vision.htm