Senators call for more spending to stem border violence

Senators on Wednesday said they think the Obama administration is not spending enough to combat drug cartel violence along the nation's southwest border, with at least one key lawmaker calling for $380 million in emergency money for the Homeland Security Department.

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., said he plans to offer an amendment that would add $380 million to the administration's emergency funding request for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which is now expected to be sent to Congress next week.

The funding would primarily help Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement hire more law enforcement officers to work along the southwestern border.

Lieberman also cited a need to change U.S. laws governing gun sales and financial reporting requirements to stem the flow of weapons and cash to the cartels. He said Congress might need to make it illegal to carry prepaid or so-called stored-value cards into Mexico if the intention is to transfer illicit funds to the cartels. Law enforcement authorities say cards, which can be bought at a variety of stores, are exempt from cross-border cash reporting requirements, making them attractive for criminals smuggling money into Mexico. Lieberman said Congress should also consider making background checks mandatory for weapon sales at gun shows.

Lieberman, along with Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said new measures announced on Tuesday by the administration to combat the Mexican drug cartels do not appear to go far enough. The measures do not call for new legislation or funding; Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the steps her department is taking are designed to be paid for with existing funds. Appearing before Lieberman's committee on Wednesday, Napolitano answered questions about the administration response to the drug violence by admitting her department will have to delay some initiatives, including the purchase of some equipment, in order to make the overall effort affordable.

"I don't think you should have to put off purchases," Graham shot back, saying additional funding to combat border violence would get bipartisan support in Congress. Lieberman said he is worried that transferring resources from elsewhere in the department is not sustainable in the long run. The additional $380 million in funding would allow the department to hire 1,600 new CBP and ICE officers, Lieberman said. The funding would also help to improve intelligence centers along the border, as well as a center Congress created to help stop human smuggling activities, he added.