Congressman calls for investigation on Sutton and House of Death
Mexico’s culture of corruption is synonymous with the drug dealers, Federales as well as the government. It is no secret business south of the border is handled with a greasy handshake full of money, but what’s surprising to most Americans are the major trade deals cut to benefit our neighbor to the south.
Why has America bent over backwards to create free trade and open borders with such an uncooperative neighbor? What has Mexico given up for the sake of our benefit? Still thinking? It could take awhile.
Mexico is a country filled with natural resources. There is plenty of fertile land for crops, it lays claim to a massive amount of oil and contains thousands of miles of sandy beaches for tourists to frolic on. So why does this country, so close to the successes of its North American neighbor continue to stagnate in corruption and remain an oligarchy?
For the meantime America is the sole superpower. But unlike the past, American administrations have made mistakes and those blunders translated into some bad deals for the American people.
So where did it begin to go wrong?
Beginning in 2002/03 the American government was in the business of trying to catch the bad guys in Juarez and in the midst of catching the murderous cartel members, ICE found itself involved in a dozen murders.
The murders took place in Juarez, Mexico at the now infamous ‘House of Death.’ Twelve murders should have shook Mexico awake and dealt a blow to the American law enforcement community. Strangely it did not. Mexico would hold on to that huge mistake and smartly use it to their advantage at a later date.
This would now become the first major law enforcement cover-up in the Bush “W” White House.
While 12 murders are taking place under the watchful eye of ICE, a mistake is made and it nearly cost the lives of several DEA agents assigned to the Juarez office. This would forever be known as the catalyst point. Once a senior DEA agent Sandalio Gonzalez learns of ICE’s shenanigans, he writes a letter and begins a paper trail.
When Gonzalez learned about the House of Death details he rightly knows something is afoul. He then writes his ICE counterpart and the office of U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton formally demanding accountability for the missteps that led to the U.S. knowing and allegedly participating in 12 murders.
It is worth pointing out that there is no statute of limitations for murder.
“Over the past five and a half years I found a trail that didn’t make sense regarding economic disparities and the undermining of national security. All paths led right back to the El Paso Region because everyone understood Mexico was holding something over us. The pattern was easily documented and verifiable. Ultimately it all led back to the House of Death,” says Andy Ramirez, president of the California based nonprofit Law Enforcement Officers Advocates Council, who documented a pattern of prosecutorial abuse by Justice, and misrepresentations of fact by Homeland Security.
With an internal cover-up in play, Mexico was in position to play the House of Death card in 2004 and thereafter due to the failure of the U.S. government to clean house. This would eventually somewhat play out in federal court in December 2006 where sworn testimony of Michelle Leonhart, then DEA Deputy Administrator places responsibility for the House of Death squarely on ICE.
When Leonhart was asked if ICE was responsible, she responded, “ICE was responsible, yes…ICE caused the incident.”
At this point, former U.S. Attorney Pete Nunez said, “heads should have rolled in this case.” Yet no high-ranking U.S. officials lost their jobs, nor were they prosecuted.
This simple fact, coupled with a massive cover-up and Mexico’s silence would allow Mexico to gain favorable economic and immigration related concessions while restructuring U.S. border security- with a very complicit Bush White House.
Uncovering the favors for the Mexican Government
Now that the cover-up is in full swing a pair of meetings would take place in Crawford, TX with Mexico’s President Vicente Fox and U.S. President Bush. During the first meeting in March of 2004, Mexico and the U.S. reached a critical agreement that allowed Mexicans with short-term visas to cross the border without being fingerprinted and photographed by U.S. authorities. The respective leaders also began a discussion of a “Guest Worker Plan” or amnesty.
In April of 2004 a plea agreement was reached regarding the murders in the House of Death case. The cartel leader, Heriberto Santillan pled guilty to drug trafficking while the murder charges were dropped. He accepted 25 years in a U.S. prison courtesy of Sutton. This plea deal ensured that Johnny Boy and the Bush Administration would not have to go into court where the gruesome tortures and murders, as well as the case mismanagement by Sutton’s office and ICE (the very things being covered-up) would be exposed in the light of day.
One can conclude that Sutton was placed all along in the position of gatekeeper to protect the White House. Along with his partner in crime Alberto Gonzales, who went from Special Counsel to the President to Attorney General, both would be able to protect all the Bush Administration’s policies regarding Mexico.
It was also during this time that Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean, El Paso Border Patrol Agents, found themselves in a heap of trouble regarding shots fired at a known drug dealer. Sutton was the prosecuting attorney in this case, and in another case involving illegal aliens, that being Edwards County Deputy Sheriff Gilmer Hernandez.
“This case (Ramos-Compean) was a skunk. It had a terrible odor,” explains Congressman Walter B. Jones-R NC. “I always wondered why there was no investigation in this matter and why the Mexican Government had so much sway in this American case involving Border Patrol Agents.”
For Jones and a few other Senior Congressional members the story is becoming increasingly clear, referring to the House of Death. “This conspiracy, corruption and cover-up screams for immediate Congressional investigation,” Jones said matter of factly.
“Wrong is wrong, and after reading more about this case it was expected that Sutton would have shut down the House of Death case after the first murder. He did not. We need to remember we are a nation of laws,” Jones finished.
However, these favors for Mexico did not just involve the questionable prosecutions of law enforcement officers.
Marginalizing the Border Patrol
Soon after in June 2004, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge releases an internal memorandum, which prohibited race profiling as an enforcement method.
U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Temecula Border Patrol Sector were conducting interior enforcement operations in Ontario, CA, which resulted in condemnation by the Mexican government and Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus claiming race profiling. Such actions have continued to this day when it comes to immigration enforcement.
June would prove to be a busy month for the Mexican government.
A Social Security Totalization Agreement was signed with Mexico. This agreement would put millions of illegal Mexican workers into the U.S. Social Security system. It is alleged that they would collect U.S. benefits based on their U.S earnings under false or stolen Social Security numbers plus earnings in Mexico. Opponents claimed this pact would further lure illegal immigration, and remain a key component for the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America.
On July 1, 2004 David V. Aguilar became Chief of the Border Patrol after being named to the position in May 2004. The appointment of Aguilar, Chief Patrol Agent of Tucson Sector, was key as he immediately began restructuring the patrol from which many controversial internal events began to inexplicably shape.
This brings us back to Andy Ramirez who stated, “It was the appointment of David Aguilar where the Border Patrol was destroyed from within. Very quickly, I had sources consisting of active duty and retired agents telling me that Mexico was running all the sectors and stations along the southwest border. In a very short time an agency who’s motto was ‘Honor First’ became one of ‘no confidence’ where their own employees would be filled with mistrust and fear of the very government they were willing to die for defending our front lines.”
By the end of summer 2004 a “gag” order was put in place by the Department of Homeland Security ending any unauthorized discussion or statements by its’ employees with the public and media. This was needed to stop any whistle blowing within the department or comments by agents to the media regarding the outrageous policies of the Bush Administration.
It is also worth pointing out that the formation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2003 was critical in bringing immigration and customs law enforcement agencies together under one umbrella and squelch any stray employees’ opposition to these types of matters.
DHS now had the Border Patrol, Customs, and ICE all within one roof. No one could step out of line under the Bush White House’s watchful eyes. Secretary Ridge and Attorney General Ashcroft would have a direct pipeline to the president, both of whom had full knowledge of the House of Death case as documented in Sandy Gonzalez’ civil suit.
Taking a cue from the 9/11 Commission Report, the Bush Administration released a new National Border Patrol Strategy, which made stopping the terrorists the top priority.
The reality was that such a strategy sounded good on paper, but accomplished very little other than giving Congress and the public a façade of smoke and mirrors to give a sense of “wow they’re doing something to control the borders.”
However, local Border Patrol sector chiefs were stripped of command and control over their kingdoms. All operations were subsequently centralized and placed under the control of headquarters and Chief Aguilar in Washington, DC. In effect, headquarters no longer served the field.
On November 16, 2004, a memorandum of understanding was completed between CBP and ICE in which ICE’ Office of Investigations was given control of key investigative responsibilities while ultimately neutering the Border Patrol by limiting enforcement to cross border traffic in “routine areas of patrol”.
Moving forward into 2005 the Congress was making a full-court press for immigration reform or amnesty.
In early spring another Bush Administration meeting took place in Texas with President Fox, and Canadian Prime Minister Martin to outline the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America.
This deal would further weaken border security and interior enforcement as well as denounce U.S. civilian border observers or Minutemen groups as vigilantes, and proposed Republican Congressional legislation calling for construction of a border fence. Discussions about a new “guest worker” plan for Mexican illegal aliens that experts have called a second amnesty also began to take shape at this tri-country pow-wow.
Throughout the summer the country would begin its grumblings about the McCain/Kennedy/Bush immigration reform bill.
Curiously the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Relations Official Website outlines all the activities by U.S. civilian groups including the Minutemen groups, and official investigations by Congressmen regarding border security and interior enforcement.
During this same time period numerous Chief Patrol Agents and other high-ranking officials in the Border Patrol suddenly began to retire early before their mandatory age-57 retirement requirement.
New Mexican President, Same Interference
In the interim, Mexican violence continued to spin out of control with the election of new President Felipe Calderon.
Meanwhile as word of the border fence made its way into the 2006 legislation it was becoming increasingly clear a fence would not be built as many Americans wanted.
“The Bush Administration was constantly dragging their feet. They wanted no part in clear language that put a mandated double fence in high traffic zones and they didn’t want a time certain for completion,” said retired Congressman Duncan L. Hunter, R-CA. “I finally just pushed for the double and triple fence in the San Diego region and left Arizona and Texas out.”
The Bush White House along with other Texas legislators would water down the required fencing in the 2006 immigration reform bill and to this day the fence has been plagued by delays, cost overruns, and bureaucratic obstruction due to immense pressure from Mexico.
However, Americans were having no part in the new amnesty talk and it would be the radio talk shows leading the charge to stop the final McCain/Kennedy/Bush legislation in its tracks.
A defeated White House and an empowered Mexican government wouldn’t end on that note.
The outgoing President Bush would get the Merida Initiative signed into law by June 30 of 2008. It provided $1.4 billion ($400 million immediately) financed through Congressional Appropriations (from U.S. taxpayers) to assist Mexico in combating transnational organized crime; Ambassador Garza and counterpart in Mexico City sign implementation agreement Dec. 3, 2008
Considering the mishandling and subsequent cover-up of the House of Death murder spree that began in El Paso and found its way to Washington, local Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) oddly has never issued any statement regarding this entire mess.
When asked to comment, Vincent Perez, Reyes’ press secretary responded with, “I don’t know what this had to do with us.”
When pressed with the fact that the agencies involved were working in his district, Perez responded, “I still don't understand what this has to do with our office.”
However, in a different matter Reyes’ office contacted ICE on June 19, 2008 regarding the kidnapping of a relative in Juarez though ICE had no jurisdiction. As a result, Reyes is now under investigation by the House Ethics Committee as a complaint was filed in July 2008 questioning the improper usage of a U.S. law enforcement agency.
Betting the House
The only way this type of political play could have been pulled off was by Mexico having a chip; keeping in mind they want open borders – amnesty at minimum. They had the political chip, or blackmail, courtesy of the mishandling and cover-up of the House of Death case. But to pull it off, law enforcement starting with the Border Patrol had to be undermined and destroyed from within; the very thing Mexico has always wanted. ICE is corrupt, overwhelmed, and melting anyhow so they would be an ineffective replacement.
The long-standing relationship between Reyes and Aguilar within management at Border Patrol is equally important. Reyes was Chief Patrol Agent of McAllen Sector while Aguilar was a high-ranking subordinate under him.
Given this relationship it would be easy to communicate and restructure the Border Patrol to the agency’s detriment with Reyes shepherding it through Congress without much notice. Many Members of Congress have deferred to Reyes due to his experience as a Border Patrol high-ranking agent.
Given DHS and the Justice Department’s roles in the House of Death case, with the ‘rule of law’ eliminated, and their failure to hold people accountable in this matter, amnesty could be pushed. The American people have been left standing alone against these overwhelming odds.
For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner
Comments
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I just want immigration reform for the my spouse, I am a usc and cannot fix his status because of the laws in place right now. Re-enact 245i LIFE.
Kim - Some of us know how hard you worked on this - and that you put yourself in danger to dig up these facts...what is really sad is that there apparently is not ONE person in Congress with the SPINE to bring this out in public and to reverse this dangerous course!
We have sublimated the U.S. to the corrupt government of Mexico - and we all know how competent they are! (not!)
Thank you for your work...this series needs to be put in the hands of someone who at least has the power to TRY to bring it to the fore and FORCE total investigation and reversal of policies!
You ask what has Mexico sent us? Hmm?
Undercutting our Border Patrol has resulted in HOW MANY American deaths? how many hit and run accidents that have ruined how many lives? how many kidnappings? - robberies? - wild fires from their encampments? schools that are overrun with them? Americans out of work while illegals are given jobs? LaRaza has called for death of Americans - but WE are called racists?
Until illegal immigration stops being so profitable for the many concerned, it will continue. Our leaders have lost all sense of morality, patriotism and the rule of law. If we don't enforce our laws, we may rightly be called a lawless nation! And we may as well be across the border from any violent middle eastern country as Mexico.
To come across the border now an illegal pays the Zetas or the Golfos $2800 a head. At times the immigrants are held hostage for an additional $1000 or $2000. The money gets transferred via Western Union or Moneygram. Their hard-working relatives walk into a local office to transfer these $ Billions annually to criminals. Later USCIS asks the petitioner or beneficiary if he/she ever assisted anyone to come in the U.S. illegally? The answer is always a lie: "NO!"
We will be donating taxpayers dollars to support the poorest of families, with little or no education. Taxpayer will be paying for the old and sick person, mentally handicapped and those who need surgery who reaches American soil. It will be the--SAME-- nightmare as the1986 immigration bill (IRCA) all over again, when 3 million materialized into 5.3 million and those working in agriculture disappeared, to enter the mainstream of US working class. Grade your policy makers at NUMBERSUSA? Read about Capitol corruption at JUDICIAL WATCH, ALIPAC, CAPSWEB, AMERICAN PATROL & THE DARK SIDE OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION. What can you do for AMERICA?
The lobbyists for the open border, business consortium's are deviously careful not to mention, that discrepancies can be resolved at the Social Security agencies. Nor do they inform of the success rate of E-Verify, the fed immigration tool identifying illegal labor. These entities were nearly successful through the intervening Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), with support from majority speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to crush the computer verification program. Unfortunately, E-Verify may become obsolete if they pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform, that will legitimize 20 to 30 million illegal immigrants? Plus it's being kept in the dark, that millions more will pour across our undermanned border, or from across the world, once they get the word that AMNESTY is about to commence?
The United States was once the most powerful nation on earth and
of course certain people disliked our quality of life and our
GREATNESS!
What better way to destroy the U.S. then by allowing amnesty to
the most hostile and violent people on earth--- MEXICANS THAT HATE THE U.S.?
You can expect the tremendous downfall of this nation when that happens.
Look at what happened to Lou Dobbs?
Next this will happen to the citizens.
For free faxes to your Reps go to numbersusa
This is it,folks. If this amnesty passes and legalizes the 50Million here, 50M more will follow quickly. Get Active!
Just as the once great Roman Empire fell, the once great United States has begun its slow but steady decline. Perhaps some time in the not too distant future, somebody will write a book entitled "The Rise and Fall of the United States of America". I'm sure that at least one chapter in this book will discuss the topics of illegal immigration and amnesties.
This is a horrible article! Are legal and illegal immigration issues important? Of course they are, but this type of sensationalist and inaccurate reporting serves no purpose. You've taken a bunch of events and concocted some huge consiracy with no evidence! I've been there! I know what the problems are. Inaccurate scare tactics directly affect credibility and the ability to create support among the majority of Americans.
Now it all makes sense. Thank you, Ms. Dvorak. Your article is one of the most important pieces in the puzzle of why a sovereign country would allow itself to be overrun and ruined. The Bush legacy is as corrupt as Mexico's and I can only hope the history books get it right. Let's see what the current administration will do about this crime although from current inactions, it would seem that it's business as usual.
I wish mexico would just break off and float away. They are like this giant useless appendage that drags the USA down. I hate the cesspool known as mexico and all it stands for...break off, float away, buh bye! I feel sorry for some of the poor people there and would be happy to help them IN THIER OWN COUNTRY. They need to rise up against thier govt and stop trying to take over ours. We are the most generous in all the world and illegals come over here and take take take. Im SICK of it!!!
Since 1975 I have traveled throughout Mexico and have discovered its beauty, resources, wonderful climate and fantastic culture. I cannot understand how anyone would ever want to leave such a wonderful blessed country. I have pondered this now for 35 years and have concluded that the only reason one would in the first place leave is due to its internal political/economic problems. My conclusion: they MUST FIGHT governmental corruption which leads to unemployment. If... if Mexico were to adapt the American entrepreneurial framework every Mexican citizens would be better off than their poor-immigrant counterparts in this country.
Last year,Americans bought enough guns and ammo to arm the Chinese and Indian armies combined. I'm ready to rock and roll. DRT means "dead right there".
I work in mexico among othe places. Mexico is screwed up because it's full of mexicans. It's really that simple.
this is for Done thats what you fu@##@cken that mexican come too take our country i am not mexican i am from texas those people come too work theres alot of fu@#@cken people that live here in the us and they dont work so the mexicans doo all the work for a lower wages that people with paper dont want too do so dont say that mexican just come too take our counrty and i hope theres an amnesty
If you want amnesty will you negotiate for it? Number One: We Americans would be able to buy all the land we want in any part of Mexico? You get a "green card" and we become the principle landholders. Prices would increase and the Mexican people could walk away with a lot of cash in their pockets.
Number Two: Have your President Calderon kill or imprison all Cartel gangsters?
All of these issues were enabled by the continued indoctrination of our public school system, which includes the Cal State Universities. Earn your way through life. Build something. Contribute to society with tangible efforts. A community organizer does not have tangible efforts to show at the end of the day. Niether do investment bankers or most lawyers. Think about it. The people with the least contributions to society are the ones running the joint. Run 'em off. Unless you actually had/have a job that contributes to our society, you will not get my vote.
I sometimes get the very clear impression, maybe I'm wrong, that most Americans--just don't give a damn about this beautiful nation, and the people in the past that sacrificed so much for it. How many young people in the Civil War, WW1 and WW2, who had girl friends or wives, or just people they loved, perished on foreign soil and never received the fruits of their victories??
What a disgrace the attitude of millions of so-called Americans are toward these heros. We have really become spiritually sick, actually allowing foreign elements to dictate things to us like amnesty, their religion, their Wall Street criminality, their need to create H1-B and H2-B visas, their need to export jobs, import people to take Americans jobs, and on and on. It's too much.
P.S. Forgive me for not including the fallen Americans in Korea, Vietnam and the continuing wars in the Middle East. As I said, it's just too much.
I concur with your frustration.
What is not mentioned is the 20+ millions of tax dollars that were given to Reyes' daughter and her son for border cameras that were found to be totally defective and many inoperable. Congress never demanded the company reimburse the government and Reyes continues to profit from his corruption, reinforced by Aguilar. Ramos and Compean opened a can of worms and Bush and Congress quickly closed the lid. However, we should demand an independent investigation into this matter. Once completed I have no doubt Bush, Gonzalez, Sutton, Cardone, Reyes, Aguilar, and many,many others would be incarcerated for a period much longer than that unjustly given to Ramos and Compean.
Many Americans were on the streets, on email, on the phone, sending faxes, making face to face visits to local, state and federal legislators regarding the out of control illegal alien problems. Sanctuary cities, Agents Ramos and Compean, and others, as well as, agents and law enforcement being attacked, murdered and assissnated because law enforcement at every level was not enforcing the laws of the United States nor the Constitution of the United States. Law enforcement has been at the mercy of the legislaure and executive branch. Bush dug the hole, Obama is trying to make his way to the bottom of the hole. This is a horrific attack on the American people by the elected politicians. Everyone, there is an election coming up in 2010, please VOTE THESE TRAITORS OUT OF OFFICE. Show the illegal alien lobbyist this is OUR country and they cannot have it.
Recently 5 jutices of the Supreme Court ruled that foreign governments, foreign corporations, domestic corporations and even Foundations can secretively back a political candidate. The Senate refused to support a bill which would require every political ad to have a face on it to identify the person or entity paying for ad. "This is Tom Jones of XYZ Corp, and I approve this ad."
The cowards in the U.S. Senate have betrayed the American people.
Joseph, maybe you could enlighten us. Tell us exactly what inaccuracies were included in the article. You seem to know all the correct information, help us out here. The Mexican government is corrupt, the Bush administration was just as corrupt, and in collusion, and the Obama administration is even more corrupt than the Bush administration was. The Mexican people have no say in their government, we do. Let's clean house. Thank you for your brave reporting, Ms. Dvorak.
The house of death story would be told, sooner or later, as all insiders knew. The story still under wraps is that Bush senior owns millions of shares of Pemex, unlawfully and unconstitutionally, by both our governments Constitution and Mexico's. Hence even more leverage. Johnny SATAN will rot in hell, where he belongs, along with the numerous criminal politicians who are nothing less than traitors to our (once) great Country.
The depressing and disheartening reality is that both parties are owned from the top down. This is why we have to FIGHT on the ISSUES and accept no "allies" in either party.
Until the American people start to truly care about the garbage that goes on in our political world, this type of garbage is going to go on. America should be mad as hell, instead we allow ourselves to be treated like any hostage game and or sales game. Divide and Conquer. Separate the weak from the strong and beat them down until they comply. This never should have happened. We surround them. Time to bring in all new meat. Throw out the bums that have been around and done nothing. Arrest the accountable for the lies and garbage.
We've got to spread the word and wake people up.
we as a nation have goten off the path.things!things!and moore things!that's all every one thinks of.even the elderlymen who have served in the military.we at some point decided to trust the government.now because off all the criminal activities on both sides of the border progress has been halted.things were going well in mexico lots of tourists lots of americans paying for homes across the border.now investors have lost every thing.no tourism it will take forever to clean this mess up
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