US Waives Laws To Accelerate Completion Of Border Fence

CHULA VISTA, CA - APRIL 03: The urban landscape of Tijuana, Mexico ends abruptly at the US-Mexico border southeast of undeveloped wilderness on April 3, 2008 in the Otay Mountain Wilderness Area southeast of Chula Vista, California. The area is the location where construction of expanding border fencing is planned in a move by the Bush administration to disregard more than 30 federal laws designed to protect the environment and cultural heritage in order to complete 670 miles of border fencing by the end of the year. Congress has given US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Michael Chertoff the power to waive the federal laws to speed up building the border barriers without delays for environmental impact studies and hearings. Two waivers allowing the DHS to ignore the laws are the most expansive to date, encompassing 470 miles of land across California, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. Conservative Republicans are praising the time-saving tactic but wildlife and conservation groups are reacting with dismay that pristine natural lands, wildlife, and cultural sites could suffer without protective oversight. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)