Readout of DHS meeting with Mexican Customs Officials

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials met with their counterparts from the Mexican Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) on Friday to outline joint initiatives to combat transnational crime, increase law enforcement collaboration and increase the secure flow of travel and trade along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Representing DHS were Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Special Representative for Border Affairs Alan Bersin, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Assistant Secretary John Morton, U.S. Border Patrol Chief David Aguilar and other DHS officials; representing SHCP were Tax Administration Chief Alfredo Gutiérrez Ortíz-Mena, Administrator General of Customs Juan José Bravo Moisés, the Customs Administrator General for Planning Pablo González Manterola and other Mexican officials.

During the meeting, U.S. and Mexican officials agreed to formalize Bi-national Port Security Committee to improve open and regular communication along the Southwest border—a significant step toward deterring violence at and near land ports of entry. These committees will address cross-border operational, safety and security issues.

Officials also agreed to build on DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano's efforts to promote smart and effective security at the Southwest border by increasing coordinated investigative efforts, committing more resources for additional inspection teams at ports of entry along the border, and implementing comprehensive plans to strengthen security and ensure the secure flow of trade during events that affect port operations.

Since March, Secretary Napolitano has doubled the number of DHS agents working to identify and apprehend violent criminal aliens and bolstered southbound inspections to search for illegal weapons and cash at the Southwest border—adding additional law enforcement, mobile X-ray machines, license plate readers, and K-9 detection teams as part of a multi-layered, integrated border security strategy.

Thus far in 2009, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and ICE have combined to seize nearly $35 million in southbound currency at the Southwest border—more than four times the amount seized during southbound operations compared to this point in 2008. Since January, CBP and ICE have also seized totals of 1,231 firearms, $92 million in cash and 1.4 million kilograms of drugs at the Southwest border—increases of 34 percent, 87 percent and 45 percent, respectively, over totals during the same period in 2008.

DHS continues to work closely with Mexico to ensure the safety and security of the U.S.-Mexico border by helping to train and equip Mexican law enforcement officers to ensure the secure flow of travel and trade while protecting both sides of the border from violence and criminal activity.

Secretary Janet Napolitano delivered these remarks in Washington, DC at the Center for American Progress

Introductory Remarks Omitted

Secretary Napolitano. [E]ven as we press to end this recession and get America back to work, we are determined to deal with long lingering problems that cloud our future. And another problem that has been punted from year to year, from Congress to Congress, from Administration to Administration, is the clear need for immigration reform.

We all know the story: A steady influx of undocumented workers, crossing our borders illegally in search of work and a better life. A market among employers willing to flout the law in order to hire cheap labor. And as a result, some 12 million people, here illegally, living in the shadows—a source of pain and conflict.

It is wrong. It's an affront to every law-abiding citizen and every employer who plays by the rules.

Like the Administration's other priorities, when it comes to immigration, we are addressing a status quo that is simply unacceptable. Everybody recognizes that our current system isn't working and that our immigration laws need to change. America's businesses, workers, and faith-based organizations are calling for reform. Law enforcement and government at every level are asking for reform. And at the Department of Homeland Security, we need reform to do our job of enforcing the law and keeping our country secure.

Over the past ten months, we've worked to improve immigration enforcement and border security within the current legal framework. But the more work we do, the more it becomes clear that the laws themselves need to be reformed.

Let me be clear: when I talk about “immigration reform,” I'm referring to what I call the “three-legged stool” that includes a commitment to serious and effective enforcement, improved legal flows for families and workers, and a firm but fair way to deal with those who are already here. That's the way that this problem has to be solved, because we need all three aspects to build a successful system. This approach has at its heart the conviction that we must demand responsibility and accountability from everyone involved in the system: immigrants, employers and government. And that begins with fair, reliable enforcement.

We know that one-sided reform, as we saw in 1986, cannot succeed. During that reform effort, the enforcement part of the equation was promised, but it didn't materialize. That helped lead to our current situation, and it undermined Americans' confidence in their government's approach to this issue. That mistake can't happen again, and it won't happen again.

The American people expect us to act. Americans value our identity as both a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws. Unfortunately, too many politicians and pundits have treated these values as contradictory. They are not, and we will pursue reforms that emphasize both. The immigrant story is part of what it means to be an American—but failing to fix a broken system that undermines our shared values of lawfulness and fairness is not.

This is why key members of Congress are taking steps toward legislation that will create an immigration system that works. This is why the President continues to be fully committed to reforming our immigration laws, and why he asked me to take a lead role in this effort.

What Has Changed Since 2007

While everyone may agree that the status quo isn't working, what everyone may not be aware of is how much the immigration landscape has changed since comprehensive reform efforts fell short in 2007. I've been dealing hands-on with immigration issues since 1993, so trust me: I know a major shift when I see one, and what I have seen makes reform far more attainable this time around.

For starters, the security of the Southwest border has been transformed from where it was in 2007. The federal government has dedicated unprecedented resources to the Mexican border in terms of manpower, technology and infrastructure—and it's made a real difference.

Last March, the Obama Administration announced a Southwest Border Initiative that has increased the resources the government is dedicating to combating drug cartels, and the smuggled cash and illegal weapons they thrive on. The Departments of Homeland Security, Justice and Defense have dedicated unprecedented resources to this initiative. This includes additional inspection and surveillance technology, as well as hundreds of personnel specializing in fields like inspection, intelligence and prosecutions. At DHS, we started screening 100 percent of southbound rail shipments for illegal weapons and cash—for the first time ever.

Compared to last year, seizures in all categories—drugs, smuggled cash, and illegal weapons—are up dramatically. For example, just looking at bulk cash, Customs and Border Protection has seized at the border more than $34 million in cash being smuggled southbound so far this year—more than four times as much as at this time last year.

Moreover, the immigration debate in 2007 happened during a period of historically high levels of illegal entry into the United States. Two years later, because of better enforcement and the current economic circumstances, those numbers have fallen sharply. The flow has reduced significantly—by more than half from the busiest years, proving we are in a much different environment than we were before.

These are major differences that should change the immigration conversation. In 2007, many members of Congress said that they could support immigration reform in the future, but only if we first made significant progress securing the border. This reflected the real concern of many Americans that the government was not serious about enforcing the law. Fast-forward to today, and many of the benchmarks these members of Congress set in 2007 have been met. For example, the Border Patrol has increased its forces to more than 20,000 officers, and DHS has built more than 600 miles of border fencing. Both of these milestones demonstrate that we have gotten Congress' message.

We've also shown that the government is serious and strategic in its approach to enforcement by making changes in how we enforce the law in the interior of the country and at worksites. We have replaced old policies that merely looked tough with policies that are designed to actually be effective.

We've revised and standardized our immigration-enforcement agreements with state and local law enforcement to make sure that these agencies are effective forcemultipliers in our efforts to apprehend dangerous criminal aliens. We've expanded the Secure Communities program, which identifies illegal aliens being booked into local jails. Yesterday, we marked the end of the first year for this program, which is being used by 95 jurisdictions and has identified more than 111,000 criminal aliens.

Furthermore, we've transformed worksite enforcement to truly address the demand side of illegal immigration. We are auditing the books of thousands of employers suspected of relying on illegal labor to achieve an unfair advantage in the marketplace. As part of this effort, Immigration and Customs Enforcement audited more employers suspected of hiring illegal labor in a single day in July than had been audited in all of 2008. We're also encouraging workplace compliance by expanding and improving the E-Verify system— an Internet-based system that allows participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of new hires. More than 167,000 employers at 639,000 worksites use E-Verify. In the past month, the program has grown at the rate of nearly 2,000 employers per week.

Improved interior and worksite enforcement is a critical part of comprehensive immigration reform. We've demonstrated that when it comes to that issue, this Administration is committed to action.

In addition, recent improvements at managing the legal immigration system also prove that the federal government is ready to handle major reform.

We've ended a year-long backlog for background checks on applicants for green cards and naturalization. We've expanded the opportunity for a widow to gain legal status here, despite the untimely death of her U.S. citizen spouse. We've launched a new interactive website that allows people to receive information about the status of their immigration cases by e-mail or text message, and we have reduced the time it takes to process those cases.

In addition to these changes, since 2007 we have made significant strides in technology. For example, new biometric technology allows us to take the fingerprints of people coming into the United States and compare their prints against databases we couldn't access before. This means we have new and enhanced abilities to quickly identify people committing immigration fraud, either by using someone else's documents or by forging documents to escape detection for a past crime or immigration violation. We also have enhanced our capacity to exclude those suspected of supporting terrorism or other serious international crimes before they enter our country.

Overall, these and other changes make comprehensive immigration reform more attainable as a matter of both politics and policy. At the border, in the interior of the country, and when it comes to legal immigration, the government has made significant strides to improve enforcement. This is a fundamental change from 2007.

Here's the other thing that has shifted in this debate: a larger segment of the American public has embraced the need to engage this debate and arrive at a sensible solution to this problem. CAP has helped to document this shift.

There are leaders of the law enforcement community speaking out, saying that immigration reform is vital to their ability to do their jobs keeping Americans safe. Faith leaders, including the National Association of Evangelicals, have announced their support for immigration reform as a moral and practical issue. We are seeing more business leaders and more labor leaders engaged in this debate in a constructive way than we have ever seen before.

These constituencies have all arrived at the same conclusion that prevails among the American people: this is a problem that needs to be fixed—and the best way to ensure that we can uphold our laws is to make sure our laws are rational and enforceable.

Why DHS Needs Immigration Reform

That reality is apparent to us at DHS. Over the past year, as this Administration has pursued more effective strategies within the current laws, the picture of how exactly those laws need to be changed has become clearer than ever before. In the past ten months, we have made tough choices, and implemented significant reforms within the current legal frame-work—but they are not enough to create the system that we want or that we need. If we are truly going to fix a broken system, Congress will have to act.

When it comes to immigration, I took an oath as Secretary of Homeland Security to secure the nation by enforcing the law and managing legal flows across the border. Let me be clear: to do this job as effectively as possible, DHS needs immigration reform.

Reform legislation would provide lasting and dedicated resources at our borders, and provide some critical legal tools that we don't currently have to combat smuggling organizations. For example, we need tougher anti-smuggling laws in dealing with the aggravated crimes smugglers commit—including assaulting law enforcement officers, endangering children, threatening relatives and abandoning people in the desert— hundreds of whom succumb to death from heat and lack of water. We also need to update current laws that don't cover some of the new means by which criminals conduct their business. For instance, today's smugglers and drug traffickers often move cash through “stored value” cards, which aren't even considered monetary instruments under the current money-smuggling laws.

In addition, we need improvements to the current law when it comes to interior and worksite enforcement. Dishonest businesses often ignore the civil fines for illegal employment now on the books because they're so low. It's also very difficult to prosecute these crimes as felonies because of the over-elaborate intent requirements built into the current statutes.

Moreover, some current laws covering immigration-related fraud have to be brought more in line with common sense. Right now, a corrupt immigration attorney who facilitates hundreds of immigration violations by knowingly helping aliens fraudulently seek asylum or permanent residence is treated almost the same as an alien who buys a single fake green card.

On top of this, in order to have fully effective law enforcement, we need Congress to create the legal foundation for bringing the millions of illegal immigrants in this country out of the shadows, require them to register and pay all taxes they owe, and enforce the penalties that they will have to pay as part of earning legal status. Let me emphasize this: we will never have fully effective law enforcement or national security as long as so many millions remain in the shadows.

Making sure these people become full taxpayers and pay their fair share will both benefit our economy and make it easier to enforce the laws against unscrupulous or exploitive employers. A tough and fair pathway to earned legal status will mandate that illegal immigrants meet a number of requirements—including registering, paying a fine, passing a criminal background check, fully paying all taxes and learning English.

These are substantial requirements that will make sure this population gets right with the law. It will help fix our broken system.

The Broad Need for Reform

While it's important to emphasize the need for immigration reform from an enforcement perspective, the need for reform stretches far beyond those reasons. We have to make sure the immigration system works to support American families, businesses and workers.

As part of the Administration's outreach on this issue, my Department has held stakeholder meetings with more than 1,000 people and organizations across the country. The businesses, community leaders, labor leaders, faith groups and law enforcement we've met with all have different stories, but they all reach the same conclusion: we need reform. This reform will be part of the new foundation for growth, prosperity, and security that this Administration is working to create.

Our system must be strong enough to prevent illegal entry and to get criminal aliens off our streets and out of the country. But it must also be smart enough to reward the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit that immigrants have always brought to America—traits that have built our nation.

Requiring illegal immigrants to register to earn legal status, as I discussed earlier, will strengthen our economy as these immigrants become full-paying taxpayers. As labor leaders have made clear to me, immigration reform will be a boon to American workers. Think about it: unions will never achieve the best terms for workers when a large part of the workforce is illegal and operates in a shadow economy. By contrast, the status quo not only hurts American workers, it also stifles potential opportunities to grow our economy.

A few months ago, I held a forum where I heard from technology executives in Silicon Valley, our country's center of technological innovation. They told me that they want to increase their workforce and help get the economy moving again, but some of the major barriers they have to growing their companies are visa laws that make it difficult for high-skilled foreigners to stay here to work. Today, we have a system where America educates many of the brightest individuals from around the world, and then tells them to leave the country when many of them would rather start their own ventures or strengthen businesses right here in America. This hurts the economy for all of us, and it has to change.

Going forward, our visa policies must work for every sector of our economy, and across the income scale. In my meetings, leaders in agriculture, service industries and other fields have told me that current visa policies are hindering the growth of businesses looking to expand. To address this economic need, we need carefully crafted programs that allow American businesses to hire needed foreign workers while protecting the labor and health-and-safety rights of all workers. We need to revise our current provisions for legal migration to help assure a legal workforce in cases where businesses can't find Americans to fill their jobs. These changes will make our economy stronger and more prosperous at all levels.

Community and faith leaders have also emphasized to me that we need reform because of how difficult the current laws can be on families, especially families of mixed legal status. Our immigration system is outdated where families are concerned, and we need to modernize and streamline the laws governing this process.

No one should have to wait in a line for years in order to reunite with a spouse or a young child. And we must protect the families of our men and women in the armed forces, some of whom volunteer to serve this country before they even become naturalized citizens. These individuals risk their lives to ensure the safety of all Americans. We have a duty to ensure that their families are treated with dignity when their soldiers return from combat.

I have had the honor of administering the oath of citizenship to active-duty personnel who had been serving our country long before I swore them in. These men and women are a reminder, as the President told them on the day of their swearing-in, that America is not just “a collection of rights,” but also “a set of responsibilities…it depends on each of us doing our part.”

Conclusion

So we all have to do our part to have a system that works. At the end of the day, when it comes to immigration, people need to be able to trust the system. Americans need to know that their government is committed to enforcing the law and securing the border—and that it takes this responsibility seriously. Law enforcement needs to have better legal tools and the necessary resources to deal with border-related and immigration-related crime. Businesses must be able find the workers they need here in America, rather than having to move overseas. Immigrants need to be able to plan their lives—they need to know that once we reform the laws, we're going to have a system that works, and that the contours of our immigration laws will last. And they need to know that they will have as many responsibilities as they do rights.

The President is committed to this issue because the need for immigration reform is so clear. This Administration does not shy away from taking on the big challenges of the 21st century, challenges that have been ignored too long and hurt our families and businesses. When Congress is ready to act, we will be ready to support them.

As I said earlier, we are both a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws. This is ingrained in our national character and it has helped make America the great nation that it is. But we must modernize our laws for the 21st century so that this vision can endure. This is a task that is critical, that is attainable, and that we are fully committed to fulfilling.

Thank you.

Secretary Robert Gates and Minister Peter MacKay delivered these remarks in Halifax, Nova Scotia

Minister MacKay. Ladies and gentlemen, “mesdames et messieurs”—(in French). Very honored and pleased to be here in the city of Halifax at the Citadel with Secretary of Defense Bob Gates. We've just had an opportunity to sit down, as we have on a number of occasions, and discuss important bilateral issues between Canada and the United States.

We had a very open and frank exchange, which is typical of previous meetings that I've had with Secretary Gates, both in the United States and at other conferences that we've attended together. And we discussed important issues to both countries and areas of cooperation, whether they be cooperation around the existing relationships in NORAD or NATO, our continued participation and efforts in the Permanent Joint Board of Defense, which is a historic working group that allows for an exchange of information around defense-related and security matters.

And we talked about the Arctic, our mutual concerns around the changing environment in the Arctic, and focus on security around North America, including the new component part of NORAD, which is the maritime approach. That's apropos of where we find ourself today. Here in a port city like Halifax, renewed focus on maritime security is something that is of great interest to the United States and to Canada.

And I expressed my appreciation on behalf of all Canadians for the tremendous support that we've received around the security for the coming 2010 Olympic Games, which will be held in Vancouver, British Columbia, on the other coast. And that, again, is a symbol of the tremendous working relationship that we've had, the tremendous level of cooperation that we've had on defense and security matters and the economic implications, of course as well, of our relationship.

So I want to again emphasize how much I appreciate the presence of Secretary Gates, his delegation, and to all of you for attending this bilateral meeting here in Halifax, which is also occurring at the same time as the very first German Marshall Fund security conference here in the city of Halifax, which is well-attended internationally. And Secretary Gates will take part in the opening of that conference later this afternoon.

So Bob, over to you.

Secretary Gates. Thanks, Peter. I'm really pleased to be here in Halifax, and want to thank you for the beautiful weather. The—some while ago, Minister Mackay suggested to me that we have a meeting dedicated to the bilateral issues that we have between us. It seems like over the past two years or so every meeting we've attended together has been focused almost exclusively on Afghanistan, and it was past time to tend to our—to our own neighborhood and the issues that we have together. So I appreciate your suggesting this meeting and our getting together.

I'm also honored to be the keynoter at the international security forum here in Halifax later this afternoon that Minister Mackay was instrumental in putting together.

We conferred on a range of shared security challenges on the continent, in the—in this hemisphere and on the global stage. We affirmed that NATO is the foundation of the U.S.-Canada defense relationship, and that ensuring this organization is aligned with emerging missions and security threats is important; it needs to evolve as we deal with a more and more sophisticated kind of threat to ourselves.

And we focused on rejuvenating the Permanent Joint Board on Defence and assigning new tasks to the broad relevant to our defense dialogue. As Peter indicated, we talked about expanding our dialogue with respect to the Arctic, and also encouraging and broadening Canada's participation in the security realm here in the Western Hemisphere. Our continued cooperation on these matters can only enhance the safety and security of both our countries.

Before closing, I would—I'd just note that last week both the United States—the United States celebrated Veterans Day and Canada celebrated Remembrance Day, which provided both of us an opportunity to honor the service of our men and women in uniform and also a chance to reflect on the sacrifices of our allies.

The United States is deeply appreciative and thankful for the skill and the contribution and the dedication of the Canadian troops in Afghanistan. Their bravery and their sacrifice is recognized by all in the United States.

And I would just like to thank the people of Halifax for their hospitality.

Minister MacKay. Thank you.

Secretary Robert Gates delivered these remarks in Halifax, Nova Scotia at the Halifax International Security Forum

Secretary Gates. Thank you, Peter. It's a honor to be here for the first Halifax International Security Forum.

As this conference is the first of its kind, in North America, I'd like to address some of the security and defense issues that are especially pressing to this continent and in the Western Hemisphere writ large.

At the Summit of the Americas in April, President Obama urged a new sense of partnership to fulfill the promise of prosperity, security and justice for the people of this hemisphere. He called for a sustained engagement—based on mutual respect, common interests and shared values—a message that I would like to amplify today.

This engagement and this partnership are so necessary, because the emerging security challenges we face are increasingly interconnected. And the nontraditional threats require a collective approach.

These challenges, from narcotrafficking to natural disasters, require an uncommon degree of coordination—among the national security, homeland defense and criminal justice agencies of our governments—as these threats do not fit into the neat, discrete boxes of 20th-century organization charts.

In the next few minutes, I will discuss some of those security challenges, highlighting promising areas of cooperation and offering some thoughts on the way ahead, particularly as relating to human rights and the role of our militaries. In all of these areas, the United States aspires to be a partner of choice in the Americas, a friend of every nation and every person seeking a future of security, dignity and freedom.

A starting point for this discussion is the long-standing relationship between the United States and Canada, the subject of my meeting this afternoon with Minister MacKay. I know that Afghanistan is on everyone's mind, with the president soon to announce his decisions on the way ahead for the United States and our partners. In Afghanistan, the Canadian military has more than distinguished itself in battle in some of the most dangerous parts of the country.

Canada has been a major contributor to the international military coalition, with more than 2,800 troops currently deployed, plus a strong commitment to support future development and governance efforts. It was Canadian soldiers, along with our British, Dutch, Danish and Estonian allies, who largely held the line in the south before U.S. reinforcements arrived in strength earlier this year. With more than 130 fallen heroes, among the highest of coalition members on a per-capita basis, the Canadian army has certainly paid the price and borne a heavy burden in Afghanistan.

We call on our other allies and friends to do what they can on behalf of this noble and necessary campaign, an effort that will, as I said last week, require more commitment, more sacrifice, and more patience from the community of free nations.

The formal defense ties between the United States and Canada date back to 1940, when President Roosevelt and Prime Minister King signed the Ogdens-burg Declaration and established the Permanent Joint Board on Defense, an arrangement of lasting value to this day.

Last year I was pleased to join Minister MacKay in Colorado Springs for the 50th anniversary of the founding of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, festivities that marked a half-century of shared commitment by the United States and Canada to protect our continent. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, and especially since the attacks of [September] 11th, NORAD has evolved from focusing almost exclusively on detecting a nuclear first strike to confronting an array of diffuse threats to our homeland from land, air and sea.

In 2006, the United States and Canada signed an expansion of the NORAD Agreement to include a maritime warning mission. Last December, we signed a new Emergency Management Cooperation Agreement. And the U.S. military is prepared, as needed, to provide support to security efforts for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

We've also been encouraged to see Canada taking a more active security role across the hemisphere, and globally as well. Canada has provided police training in Mexico, to combat the drug cartels. Canada has helped build the capacity of Jamaica's counterterrorism operations group, a unit of the Jamaican Defense Force that thwarted an airline hijacking in April, without any casualties.

Canada has demonstrated hemispheric leadership, hosting the 2008 Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas in Banff, a gathering which, in addition to fostering dialogue among neighbors on defense and security matters, created a regionwide working group to improve cooperation for disaster assistance.

And internationally, last year a Canadian admiral led Combined Task Force 150, a multinational fleet comprised of about a dozen warships that patrol the waters off the Horn of Africa for pirates and terrorists.

Canada and the U.S. are both Arctic nations—an item on our bilateral agenda today, and a subject of a panel at this conference. We share an interest in developing more ice-breaking ships for mobility, and improving domain awareness to support search and rescue, in light of increased tourism up north. Even as the U.S. resets relations with Russia, we will work with Canada to ensure that increased Russian activity in the Arctic does not lead to miscalculation or unnecessary friction.

I should also use this occasion to say that the United States still remembers warmly the prompt and generous Canadian response to Hurricane Katrina: a package consisting of warships; helicopters; 900 troops, including combat engineers; and thousands of pounds of relief supplies.

Which brings me to the first of several shared security challenges we face in this hemisphere: the threat from natural hazards. Katrina was the most devastating of a number of natural calamities that have hit the region in recent years.

As our neighbors to the north and south came to the aid of the U.S. during those dark days, the resources of the U.S. military are available when the people of this hemisphere are struck by natural disasters, from the response of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps in Haiti after Hurricane Ike last year to the work by U.S. Army and Air Force personnel providing lifesaving aid just last week after devastating flooding and mudslides hit El Salvador.

The melting of the polar ice cap in the Arctic plus the frequency and intensity of weather events in this hemisphere, with the corresponding need for military humanitarian assistance missions, calls for a greater attention to the security implications of climate change. For the first time, our Quadrennial Defense Review, at the direction of the U.S. Congress, will examine the U.S. armed forces' ability to respond to the impact of global warming.

We also know that the unprecedented freedom of movement in this hemisphere, while providing enormous economic benefit, also allows more opportunities for dangerous criminal elements to exploit gaps and weaknesses in governance and sovereignty within and between our nations. This situation creates an alarming potential nexus between the traditional source of narco-traffickers and—the traditional scourge of narco-traffickers and the emerging threats posed by international terrorist networks.

The same means and routes used to transport drugs could also be used for dangerous weapons and materials. Drug runners, for example, still use low-flying aircraft, but they're also building homemade semi-submersible vessels that can carry tons of cargo and are very difficult to detect in open waters.

In Colombia, the FARC showed how an outlaw group can use ungoverned space to rearm and retrain while funding operations through the narcotics trade. But the progress Colombia has made in recent years with U.S. assistance also shows that it is possible to counter and ultimately defeat these threats, and to do so in a way that is consistent with respect for human rights and the rule of law.

In all, when it comes to interdiction and law enforcement, we cannot expect to make headway on narcotics without a multifaceted, multinational, comprehensive approach to the problem. We need to work together to fortify judicial institutions and the rule of law. In this way, these nations will be better prepared to counter these pernicious threats.

In concert with other U.S. government agencies, the NGO community, Canada and other nations, we can assist in providing the breathing room needed, for Western Hemisphere democracies to develop their fullest economic and political potential.

The role of the Department of Defense, and it is a limited role, is to detect and monitor trafficking, while providing the training and equipment that allows our partners in the region to pursue drug gangs and stymie the flow of illegal narcotics.

The United States for its part is committed to reducing its demand for illegal drugs and also to stopping the flow of illegal guns and cash across our southern border. Toward this end, the president has made it a priority to ratify the illegal trafficking in firearms convention.

To deal with the narcotics trade and other challenges, in addition to our bilateral assistance efforts, we're also looking to encourage more collaboration among other nations that traditionally have not worked together on security matters.

The U.S. government and our Caribbean partners are organizing the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, a multinational effort to combat illicit trafficking, with other international partners invited to participate as observers.

Some $45 million has been directed to build upon best practices and develop new modes of cooperation in the Caribbean. One area of focus will be counternar-cotics, as drug gangs under increasing pressure in Mexico may seek to route more of their product through the Caribbean.

U.S. Southern Command hosts the annual Tradewinds exercise with a number of Caribbean militaries, the goal being to improve regional coordination in areas such as search & rescue and drug interdiction.

An example of what can be achieved: Recently Mexico, Colombia and Guatemala—working together with the U.S. Joint Interagency Task Force South—detected, monitored and the captured a semi-submersible craft that was carrying several tons of drugs.

We are encouraging partners from outside the region, many with a keen interest in stemming the flow of drugs to their own countries, to participate in these efforts.

The United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Spain for example have liaison officers at the Joint Interagency Task Force South and participated in Operation Caribe Royale and Operation Caribe Venture. The Department of Defense is prepared to provide military assistance when needed and where appropriate.

The progress on complex security challenges requires a commitment of resources and political will from our partners as well. Working with Mexico and Central America, supported by funds appropriated by Congress, the Merida Initiative seeks to support efforts to counter drug-trafficking organizations. We're truly grateful for the support we've received from Congress enabling these efforts.

We think first of Mexico's northern border, but Mexico's southern border is equally challenging. Efforts to help our Central American and Caribbean partners to counter drug-trafficking organizations will focus on improving their ability to monitor and to react to violations of their air and maritime domains.

Before closing, I'd like to make two further points. First, I believe that it is not only possible but it is imperative that we take on these shared threats in a way that is respectful of human rights and human dignity.

Violent crime represents a major threat to security in much of the Western Hemisphere. The police forces in a number of countries are overwhelmed and often outgunned, creating a culture of insecurity. Some countries have assigned law enforcement responsibilities to their military forces. Strong human rights programs are vital when conducting military responses in such complex environments.

It is clear, even to this veteran of CIA and cold warrior that security gains will be illusory if they lack the public legitimacy that comes with respect for human rights and the rule or law.

The U.S. military has faced some of these issues in Iraq and Afghanistan, in the treatment of detainees and in the protection of civilians. We have much to learn from each other in the human rights realm.

As I mentioned earlier, Colombia has recognized the need to observe these norms in its campaign against the FARC, and despite setbacks has shown increased determination to root out human rights violations.

And even as Mexico battle ruthless drug lords committing unspeakable crimes, the Mexican government is working to address rights concerns through training programs in its armed forces.

The United States has made it a point to integrate human rights instruction into our joint training and education in programs such as the Western Hemispheric (sic) Institute for Security Cooperation, and the Defense Institute for International Legal Studies.

The second and related point pertains to the role of the U.S. military. Though I am addressing these issues as secretary of Defense, it is imperative to keep front and center that the military is in a supporting, not a lead role in dealing with most of the problems I've described this afternoon. The work of U.S. regional combatant commands in security cooperation and building the defense capacity of partners remains essential. To be sure, there are certain capabilities—manpower, logistics, technology—that only the military can provide. Indeed, many years ago U.N. Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold said, in reference to peacekeeping, that it's not a soldier's job, but sometimes only a soldier can do it.

Nonetheless, there is some discomfort among civilian NGOs and agencies about what is seen as an increasing role by the U.S. military in development, humanitarian assistance and in some cases public diplomacy. On a number of occasions I have emphasized the importance of rebuilding and modernizing the civilian instruments of U.S. national security apparatus. And I've warned against a creeping militarization, by default, of some aspects of our foreign policy if those deficiencies aren't addressed.

President Obama and Secretary Clinton have committed to achieving a better balance between defense capabilities, on the one hand, and civilian development and diplomacy capacity on the other. This shift applies to homeland security capabilities, as well, such as the Coast Guard and Border Patrol.

For much of the Western Hemisphere, the issue is more the proper role and authorities of the military relative to law enforcement, politics and civil society. These are difficult matters, and I believe that gatherings such as this one can go a long way toward gaining a better understanding of these issues to benefit the people of this region.

In working through these issues and in confronting the range of vexing security challenges that this century has presented us, the nations of this hemisphere should know, along with our transatlantic partners, that the United States is committed, in President Obama's words, to a new chapter of engagement, one that is comprehensive, sustained and reflective of the aspirations of the people of the Americas.

I thank the German Marshall Fund for the opportunity to speak today, and I look forward to taking a couple of questions. Thank you.

Secretary Napolitano and Minister Van Loan announce initiatives to combat common threats and expedite travel and trade

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Public Safety Canada Minister Peter Van Loan today announced initiatives between the United States and Canada.

Those initiatives build on their shared commitment to tackle common threats like terrorism and organized crime while ensuring the lawful flow of travel and trade across the border.

The announcement came after Secretary Napolitano and Minister Van Loan met for the second of their formal biannual meetings; the Secretary and the Minister have also met three other times this year.

Today they reviewed progress on the mutual goals they announced in May— including enhancing information sharing and expanding integrated law enforcement while protecting privacy and economic security.

“Close cooperation and coordination between the United States and Canada is critical to the national and economic security of both nations,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Minister Van Loan and I are committed to working together to combat transnational threats and facilitate lawful travel and trade on both sides of the border.”

“A shared understanding of the threats and risks we face is paramount to our common objective of enhancing U.S.-Canadian security. We are working together to achieve this,” said Minister Van Loan. “We have a joint responsibility to secure the safety of our citizens.”

Secretary Napolitano and Minister Van Loan also made announcements to strengthen both trade and security:

Streamlining Border Shipping: Canada and United States have agreed to work toward aligning the U.S. Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Canada's Partners in Protection (PIP) program, in an effort to achieve harmonization as quickly as possible. These trusted shipper programs focus on improving the security of private sector supply chains and benefit shippers.

Maritime Emergency Cooperation: Canada and United States have created a Maritime Annex to the Joint Framework for the Movement of People and Goods During and Following Emergencies. This is an addition to the Framework the countries established in May. The new annex guides communication and coordination during incidents that affect shared waterways and ports, enabling both nations to assist one another during emergencies.

NEXUS and FAST Cards Now Accepted Everywhere: Canada will join the United States in recognizing NEXUS and Free and Secure Trade (FAST) trusted traveler program cards as valid identification documents in all lanes at all land and sea border ports of entry beginning Nov. 25. It was also announced that the programs are expanding with new enrollment centers opening in St. Stephen, New Brunswick— Calais, Maine and Lansdowne, Ontario— Alexandria Bay, N.Y

Immigration Information Sharing: Secretary Napolitano announced that the United States will join a biometric data sharing initiative involving Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and, eventually, New Zealand—an initiative designed to strengthen the integrity of immigration systems and the security of each country while protecting privacy and civil rights. Minister Van Loan, with the Canadian Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Jason Kenney, welcomed the United States' participation.

“Previous trials show that biometric information sharing works. For example, when the fingerprints of some asylum claimants in Canada were checked against the U.S. database, more than a third matched and 12 percent of these individuals presented a different identity in the United States,” said Minister Kenney. “The data sharing helps uncover details about refugee claimants such as identity, nationality, criminality, travel and immigration history, all of which can prove relevant to the claim.”

Fighting Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing: Secretary Napolitano and Minister Van Loan announced that the two countries are in the final stages of completing a Memorandum of Understanding to share data on currency seized at the border. This will significantly enhance the ability of law enforcement officers in both countries to investigate and track illicit cash movement. It will disrupt the flow of funds that support the activities of criminals and terrorists.

Combating Human Trafficking: Secretary Napolitano and Minister Van Loan agreed to instruct their respective law enforcement agencies to enhance collaboration on efforts to combat human trafficking in both nations and across the U.S.-Canada border. As part of extensive existing cooperative efforts to ensure the security of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games, both countries are already focusing on ensuring that the Games do not present a venue for criminals to engage in human trafficking.

Security Cooperation: Secretary Napolitano and Minister Van Loan also agreed to exchange best practices and broaden collaboration in the areas of critical infrastructure protection and countering violent extremism.

Continuing Cooperation: Minister Van Loan and Secretary Napolitano expect to meet again in approximately six months to continue their strategic work on mutual initiatives to combat security threats and expedite travel and trade.

Secretary Napolitano and Mexican Finance Secretary Agustín Carstens sign enhanced Declaration of Principles to strengthen bilateral economic and security cooperation

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and Mexican Secretary of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) Agustín Carstens today signed an updated and enhanced Declaration of Principles (DOP)—accomplishing the goals they outlined in June to create a joint United States-Mexico framework to improve security along the Southwest border and facilitate the flow of legitimate travel and trade.

“Protecting the interconnected security and economic interests of the United States and Mexico depends on close collaboration between our two nations,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Secretary Carstens and I will continue to work together to coordinate efforts to crack down on violent drug cartels along the Southwest border while facilitating the flow of legitimate travel and trade.”

“We are building upon a longstanding relationship and cooperation, which have derived extraordinary results, particularly in matters of trade facilitation to legitimate stakeholders and law enforcement,” said Secretary Carstens. “However, today's world demands from us a more intelligent and coordinated way to protect our borders and facilitate trade.”

Under the updated and enhanced DOP signed today, DHS and the Mexican Ministry of Finance and Public Credit will continue to make progress on existing objectives while also identifying new joint initiatives and long-term programs to augment information-sharing mechanisms and coordinate border management—improving the efficiency of border operations and strengthening law enforcement cooperation.

The DOP serves as a policy framework for engaging on multiple fronts—including emphasizing professionalism among law enforcement personnel through integrity-related training and the sharing of best practices; working toward the full implementation of the World Customs Organization's Framework of Standards; and establishing improved mechanisms for information-sharing.

The DOP also reinforces the importance of the Bilateral Strategic Plan (BSP), signed today by officials representing U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Mexico Customs, which establishes an Executive Steering Committee—comprised of representatives from DHS and Mexico's Ministry of Finance and Public Credit and the Administrator General of Customs—to review coordinated initiatives to further the economic and security interests of both nations.

One such program is the establishment of Bi-National Port Security Committees, which will improve open and regular communication between ports and Port Directors along the Southwest border and address cross-border operational, safety and security issues—a significant step toward deterring violence at and near land ports of entry.

Since January, the U.S and Mexico have signed three agreements building on unprecedented levels of collaboration between the two nations designed to combat transnational crime, increase law enforcement collaboration and increase the secure flow of travel and trade along the Southwest border.

Secretary Hillary Clinton delivered these remarks in Washington, DC

Secretary Clinton. I'd like to say a few words about Honduras. President-elect Lobo has been meeting this week with President Arias of Costa Rica, President Martinelli of Panama, and has been in touch with other leaders throughout the hemisphere to advance regional cooperation with respect to Honduras.

Ever since the June 28 coup, the United States has remained dedicated both to our democratic principles and our determination to help Honduras find a pragmatic path to restore democratic and constitutional order. We condemned President Zelaya's expulsion from Honduras as inconsistent with democratic principles and the Inter-American Democratic Charter, and we have taken significant steps to signal our determination.

At the same time, working with OAS, President Arias and diverse sectors in Honduras, we've spared no effort to help Hondurans find a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the crisis, a resolution that restores democratic and constitutional order. We supported the San Jose process. We welcomed the negotiations among Hondurans themselves that led to the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord. And we are encouraged by the work of regional leaders in support of this process. Yesterday, I spoke with President Arias and I will continue to reach out to other leaders as well.

A year-long electoral process culminated on November 29 when the Honduran people expressed their democratic will peacefully and in large numbers. And we salute the Honduran people for this achievement and we congratulate President-elect Lobo for his victory. These November 29 elections marked an important milestone in the process moving forward, but not its end. President-elect Lobo has launched a national dialogue and he has called for the formation of a national unity government and a truth commission as set forth in the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord. We stand with the Honduran people and we will continue to work closely with others in the region who seek to determine the democratic way forward for Honduras.

Secretary Hillary Clinton and Foreign Minister Hugo Martinez delivered these remarks in Washington, DC

Secretary Clinton. I want to welcome Minister Martinez to the State Department. I was very honored to represent President Obama and our country at the inauguration of President Funes. And the United States is very proud to support the development and democracy that is ongoing in El Salvador. We have a number of issues that we will be discussing that we are working on together, but it is a real pleasure to see the minister again and to reaffirm the strong bonds between our countries.

Foreign Minister Martinez. Thank you. It's an honor for me, Madame Secretary, to be in the same room with you. It was also an honor to have you in El Salvador for the inauguration of President Funes. And in fact, we do have a number of issues that we're going to be talking about here related to our strategic relationship between the two countries, and these are issues which we hope to continue talking about, including in the future meeting that we're working on between President Funes and President Obama. So again, it is an honor for me to be here to begin this dialogue with you.

Secretary Hillary Clinton delivered these remarks in Washington, DC at the first diplomacy briefing series meeting focused on the issues and challenges of U.S. relations with Latin America

Introductory Remarks Omitted

Secretary Clinton. I want to share a few words with you this morning about our approach to our neighbors, our friends, our partners in the Western Hemisphere. But the purpose of this event goes far beyond the important relationships that we have here in the Americas, because we want all of our citizens to be part of a broader foreign policy discussion. Here at the State Department, we want to listen, not just talk, and you'll have a chance to talk to us as the day goes on, but also to hear your views and ideas.

Now if you look at this hemisphere, particularly Latin America, we see a lot of positive trends—from rising wages to higher school enrollments to better health. But there remains a huge reservoir of potential that needs to be tapped to continue building on this progress over the years and decades to come, and we want to do a better job of partnering with friends and allies in the region.

As you know, here at the State Department, we are elevating diplomacy and development to be on the same level when we talk about our foreign policy and our national security with defense—it's the three Ds. It's part of a smart power approach that we are committed to. It begins with engaging in more robust diplomacy, both with and beyond governments. We have also a real commitment to making sure that development is always in our conversation, always in our mind, and always at the head of our priority list.

Now, we've been working in a number of areas, and I want briefly just to mention some. Some have tested our partnership and our approach over the last few months. Some are innovative new ways of bringing people together. Let's start with Honduras. We have worked with a number of other countries on a pragmatic, principled, multilateral approach. We've engaged in intensive personal diplomacy. Since the coup, the United States has been committed both to our democratic principles and to providing help to the Hondurans to find a way back to democratic and constitutional order.

We condemned President Zelaya's expulsion. We've taken concrete steps to demonstrate unequivocally our opposition. But we've continued to try to reach out and work with diverse sectors in Honduras, and along with others like President Arias of Costa Rica, to help the Hondurans themselves chart a way forward for a peaceful, negotiated end to this crisis.

Now, the culmination of what was a year-long electoral process occurred on November 29^th when the Honduran people expressed their feelings and their commitment to a democratic future. They turned out in large numbers and they threw out, in effect, the party of both President Zelaya and the de facto leader, Mr. Micheletti. Since then, President-elect Lobo has launched a national dialogue. He's called for the formation of a national unity government and a truth commission as set forth among the requirements in the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord. That is an agreement that the Hondurans themselves reached. We helped to facilitate it, but the Hondurans decided they wanted a local resolution.

In the days and weeks ahead, we want to be on the side of the Honduran people. We want to work closely with others in the region, particularly Central America, so that what is a real problem can be resolved by everyone coming together. As important as these diplomatic efforts are, though, we know that governments cannot solve these problems alone, and no one nation can. I've said from the very beginning of my tenure as Secretary of State that the United States cannot solve all the problems in our hemisphere or anywhere in the world alone, but the problems cannot be solved unless the United States is involved. So part of our challenge is how we get others to step up and work with us.

We're enlisting a lot of different voices and some of the best minds in the public and private sectors to work on regional and global challenges like climate change. The Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas announced by President Obama in Trinidad and Tobago earlier this year will help to harness our collective ability to promote renewable energy and reduce emissions. We're also trying to reach deep into societies to promote public diplomacy. The Alliance of Youth Movements, launched in Mexico City in October with the backing of the State Department, is helping young leaders drive positive change in their own societies, starting with little more than a cell phone and an idea.

We're working with our partners in Latin America to find ways of ensuring economic growth that doesn't just benefit the upper echelons of society. Anyone who spends more than five minutes looking at the challenges in Latin America knows that the income disparity is one of the biggest that we have to overcome. So how do we drive economic growth downward? Many of you are aware of the Pathways to Prosperity initiative, which I helped re-launch in El Salvador in June, along with ministers from more than a dozen other countries.

Our focus of pathways is to empower women as drivers of economic and social progress, and this fall, we hosted a meeting of promising female entrepreneurs from the region here at State, bringing them together with more experienced businesswomen who can serve as models and mentors. There are new ways of doing business founded on mutual respect and common vision, but also on shared responsibility.

Now the United States has, as I have said repeatedly, contributed to some of the problems we see in the region. But we are determined in the Obama Administration to be part of the solution. We are committed to partnerships not just in word, but in deed. And we want to forge stronger avenues of cooperation and collaboration, but we want to do it on many levels simultaneously. Seldom in this region has there been such agreement on the basic principles of freedom and democracy.

Now is the time to go forward with these principles as our foundation and our guide. That means making sure that we not only do hold elections, but that democracy delivers for citizens, so that people can see the results of these elections. And it also means that you don't just have an election once. You actually have them on a periodic basis, in accordance with constitutional and legal precedent. It means a free press. It means protection of minorities. It means an independent judiciary. It means all of the institutional elements that make democracies sustainable.

We also have to make sure that when it comes to development, we're not just providing aid, but we are empowering people to aid themselves. And we've seen a lot of good examples of that, but we've never taken any of them to scale in the way that they need to be. Now, there will continue to be challenges. But we feel like we are entering into a new relationship. It is one that we care deeply about, and that we intend to foster.

So just to end, just three brief examples. We are, as you know, working to support the Mexican Government in their brave fight against the drug traffickers and the criminal cartels. I really commend not only the Mexican Government, but so many Mexican citizens who have withstood the onslaught of horrific violence. But it's not only that we're providing more military equipment or training; we're looking for ways that we can cooperate on bolstering institutional support for peace and justice, for human rights and democracy. And it is a long-term commitment.

When I went to Mexico early in my term, I said—and it was somewhat controversial here in the United States—that we bore part of the responsibility for what was happening to Mexico today, that it was our drug demand. It was a lot of our policies that unfortunately had helped to fuel this assault on the government and the people of Mexico. But we also have this youth alliance. And we sent some of our young entrepreneurial technophiles down to Mexico—you'll meet some of them later today—to develop with young Mexican activists a network where anonymous reports of criminal activity and official corruption could be reported. And we were able to put this together with the help of the government, with the help of some of the biggest business leaders in Mexico to use technology to leapfrog some of the challenges that people who want to stand up against both crime and corruption face today.

And finally, we had an event at the United Nations General Assembly where we shone a bright spotlight on some of the policies that are homegrown in Latin America that are being adopted in the United States and elsewhere in the world—programs that are real pioneers in Mexico, in Brazil, in Chile to encourage families to keep children in school, to bring children to their health exams. By empowering families with cash payments to be able to afford to do what will be in the long term interest of their children and their children's future, it not only helps individual children, but it creates a demand for these services from the community level up. So we're optimistic that with new tools, new techniques, new ideas, we're going to be able to revolutionize some of what has been the most intractable problems that we've faced in Caribbean, in Mexico, Central America, South America.

So with that, let me welcome you to the State Department. I think we're going to take a couple of questions. And I am very pleased that you will later hear from my friend, Maria Otero, the first Hispanic under secretary in the State Department's history, which I was shocked to learn— and Arturo Valenzuela, who many of you know, a true Latin Americanist who I enticed out of the joys of academia to work 18 hours a day. You'll hear from Assistant Secretary Lou C.deBaca, who we also recruited to lead our efforts on human trafficking, the modern day form of slavery, and so many others who are part of the leadership team here at the State Department.

So let's get to your questions.

Q. Good morning. My name is Susana Molina and I'm from the University of Central Florida. My question is: Is democratic progress in danger by social unrest and the rise of the left in Latin America? Whether yes or no, how do these developments affect U.S. interest?

Secretary Clinton That's a really important question. I feel so strongly that we have to support the rights of all people to voice their opinions, and we want to further economic equality, not just prosperity, because for too many years, prosperity has increased in Latin America without being equally distributed. We want to build a strong base of democratic support for fundamental freedoms of all people, and governments need to be effective, accountable, and responsive to the needs of their citizens.

And I said earlier in my remarks that you really have to be supporting the entire institutional foundation for democracy. And we do worry about leaders who get elected and get elected fairly and freely and legitimately, but then, upon being elected, begin to undermine the constitutional and democratic order, the private sector, the rights of people to be free from harassment, depression, to be able to participate fully in their societies.

So I worry about how we get back on the track where we recognize that democracy is not about individual leaders. It is about strong institutions. Good leaders come and go. Obviously, we've had our own experience in this country with that. And so we need to make it absolutely an article of faith that any leader elected must not just further his own position and his power base, but respect the rights of the people who elected him and build up the democracy so that democratic development and economic development can go hand in hand.

I mean, obviously, we have expressed our concerns about Venezuela, about Nicaragua. We will continue to express our concerns, because it's important that we sound a strong call to people and to leaders to really stay on the path of democracy. So I thank you for your question, and obviously, we all hope in the not-too-distant future to be able to see a democratic Cuba, something that would be extraordinarily positive for our hemisphere.

Mr. Crowley. Unfortunately, the Secretary is running short of time. Our last question for her will come from Trinity there in San Antonio. Go ahead.

Secretary Clinton. Hi, Trinity. I've been there. I love your campus.

Q. Thank you. Good morning. Secretary of State Clinton, I along with millions of others who call this country home am the child of immigrant parents. Many of us have, if not experienced a migratory event, have lived the experience through our parents or family members. For us, this experience is very real. What are your efforts, if any, to humanize the relationship between Washington and Mexico and to steer the rhetoric that is used to discuss the difficult issues facing undocumented immigrants in a more positive direction?

Secretary Clinton. Well, as I'm sure you know, both President Obama and I are very committed to comprehensive immigration reform, and the President has said that we will be able to deal with this very important issue next year. And I think it's absolutely imperative that we do. I've had a number of comprehensive, in-depth meetings and discussions with my Mexican counterparts, and it is, of course, a great concern to Mexico, to Central America, and even parts of South America.

We have to have a rational, compassionate, pragmatic, humane immigration policy. And we have a lot of good ideas about how to do that. We just have to make the case that our relationship with Mexico in particular, but with other countries as well, has to operate on multiple levels at once. And we just cause a lot of difficulties, it costs a lot of money, it is often very damaging to hardworking people here in this country to have the kind of immigration laws and their enforcement that we currently have.

Now, you have to enforce the laws and you have to protect your borders, and we just heard it's not just hardworking people from Mexico or Guatemala who want to come for a better life. People are being smuggled into those countries to be smuggled into the United States for all kinds of purposes. So we do have to have laws, but we need to have the kind of comprehensive immigration reform that President Obama championed, that I've advocated, that we think could help us not only resolve the problem going forward, but send a very clear message to the millions of people here that if they meet certain conditions, they will be able to be on a path to citizenship.

So there's a lot to do, but it remains one of our highest priorities, and it is an issue that I hope we will turn to in 2010. Thank you all very much.