President Bush apparently heard and has now answered the calls by many conservatives to pardon Ramos and Compean, the two border patrol agents doing a ten year stretch for shooting a drug smuggler in the ass on the border.

However, instead of a full pardon the president decided to give a commutation to each of the men. He wanted to recognize that crimes were committed in this case and a jury found them guilty. But the sentences for each of the men were too draconian — a sentiment that even the prosecutor who put them away shared.

By commuting the sentences of the two men, they will in effect be given credit for time served and will be released on March 20th.

-Chris Jones

This from The National Border Patrol Council:

A Tucson Sector Border Patrol agent was held at gunpoint by the Mexican military last night south of Ajo. Mexican military personnel crossed over the border and pointed rifles at him. Backup units arrived from the Ajo Border Patrol station, and the Mexican military personnel eventually returned to Mexico. Unfortunately, this sort of behavior by Mexican military personnel has been going on for years. They are never held accountable, and the United States government will undoubtedly brush this off as another case of “Oh well, they didn’t know they were in the United States.” A few years ago the Mexican military went a step further and put a .50 calibre rifle round through the rear window of a Border Patrol agent’s patrol vehicle south of Ajo. Nothing was ever done. Nobody was ever held accountable. Particularly galling is the fact that the Mexican military often pulls these stunts in Humvees donated to them by the American taxpayers (although they were apparently on foot this time). We note that Border Patrol agents have historically driven worn-out, junk vehicles.

I cannot imagine the United States just shrugging off the continued incursion of foreign military into the United States. This kind of thing should provoke unprecedented outrage by American citizens. Armed Mexican military should be shot on site if spotted on the U.S. side of the border.