WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Lyle Ryter, vice-president, U.S. Border Control, one of the largest groups promoting immigration reforms, expressed disappointment that the President failed to recognize the issue of illegal immigration in his State of the Union Address.

"The President," Ryter said, "has failed to address the connection between illegal immigration and drug trafficking in the United States, the greatest threat that this country has faced in this decade. We will continue to see drugs coming across the border until such time as he holds the Mexican Government accountable for halting illegal immigration on their side of the border."

"In a December 3, 1997 meeting, some 56 days ago, General Barry R. McCaffrey, the President's Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy, identified illegals as the major force in the distribution of drugs in California as well as nationwide. Nowhere in the President's speech was there presented any ideas of how to secure our borders from the Mexican Drug Cartels who now use thousands of illegal aliens to carry drugs north to the streets of American cities daily and then enroll the illegals in their network of drug pushers, a career that does not require them to carry a green card," Ryter said.

"This administration appears unconscious of the damage that illegal immigration and drugs are inflicting on the American people," Ryter said. "Although the number of meetings between President Clinton and Mexican President Zedillo is unprecedented, these endless discussions have yielded virtually nothing as far as controlling either drugs or illegal aliens is concerned. Our borders, north and south are a sham."

U.S. Border Control lobbied the Congress against granting the President so-called "fast track" capability to negotiate more NAFTA like treaties with other Latin American countries. The current NAFTA Treaty with Mexico has not only failed to live up to its promise of halting illegal immigration, it, in reality, enables the drug cartels to load Mexican trucks with drugs that are expedited through border crossings under NAFTA provisions.

U.S. Border Control's mission is to help the Congress establish effective border and immigration policies to end the immigration crisis which has caused many social and economic problems for our nation and its citizens.

SOURCE: U.S. Border Control
Contact: Lyle Ryter of U.S. Border Control
Telephone: 202-661-4707; Fax: 202-478-0254
Email: ryter@usbc.org
WEBSITE: http://www.usbc.org