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TB-infected Mexican national enjoys open borders

By Michelle Malkin  •  October 17, 2007 09:09 PM

Sara Carter and Audrey Hudson at the WashTimes have the scoop:

A Mexican national infected with a highly contagious form of tuberculosis crossed the U.S. border 76 times and took multiple domestic flights in the last year, according to Customs and Border Protection interviews and documents obtained by The Washington Times.

The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency was warned by health officials on April 16 that the frequent traveler was infected, but it took the Homeland Security officials more than six weeks to issue a May 31 alert to warn its own border inspectors, according to Homeland Security sources who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. Homeland Security took one more week to tell its own Transportation Security Agency.

Excellent work uncovering this latest travesty, ladies.

But be careful. You know you’re not allowed to write about TB and open borders.

Someone might threaten to spit on you.

Posted in: Tuberculosis

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Comments

  1. #1
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:15 pm, meatpieandtatters said:

    Ah, come on! Can’t we just accept the fact that crossing all that uninhabited Mexican border territory one is susceptible to disease?

  2. #2
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:16 pm, John Ansell said:

    Hold the lettuce on that sandwich.

  3. #3
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:17 pm, Ali-Bubba said:

    Heckuva job, Brownie!

  4. #4
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:20 pm, ajmontana said:

    A Mexican national infected with a highly contagious form of tuberculosis crossed the U.S. border 76 times and took multiple domestic flights in the last year

    And why exactly was he crossing and flying so much? Was he a Coyote or a stewardess? sheesh…

  5. #5
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:20 pm, Jim M. said:

    This is an outrage - 7 weeks?????

    This is the same TB strain that is resistent to antibiotics and is highly virulent.

    So in those 7 weeks, that one person came into contact with hundreds of people, which people have now come into contacts with possibly hundreds more - each.

    Our immigration policies are supposed to protect the Country from these types of things. It at least used to be that people immigrating legally had to go through a medical screening.

    We had all but wiped out many diseases in this Country. Looks like that is going to change.

  6. #6
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:21 pm, WisCon said:

    Homeland what?

  7. #7
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:24 pm, Boomer said:

    Nothing like watching the Department of Homeland Insecurity springing into action, only 6 weeks to respond to a highly contagious health threat. Wonder what their best time will be to alert their organization to go after a known terrorist about to enter the US. Thanks to Sara Carter and Audrey Hudson at the Washington Times to alert us of this threat and the gross incompetence of Chertoff’s Clown’s.

  8. #8
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:32 pm, beenthere said:

    Perhaps he was voting 76 times? That is the whole point of the open borders/sanctuary cities, after all. Not to mention the money that goes with that just for showing up.

    I want to call what we have now a votocracy, but that seems far too clean. I am open to suggestions. It does appear that “compassionate conservatism” is within spitting distance of “suicidal socialism.”

  9. #9
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:33 pm, puhiawa said:

    Chertoff acts stupid, is stupid, and thinks we are stupid. We have to get rid of this arrogant ass. This alone is a good reason to be rid of Bush.

  10. #10
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:33 pm, AlohaGuy said:

    Wash your lettuce Chertoff…

  11. #11
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:39 pm, JammieWearingFool said:

    Was he delivering lettuce to Chertoff?

  12. #12
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:44 pm, John Ansell said:

    #8, I like Hsuicide Socialism.

  13. #13
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:44 pm, Jim M. said:

    Chertoff ought to be grilled over this. There is no telling how many people have been exposed.

    Think about it - this ONE person has managed to commit an act that known terrorists have been unable to commit. And the number of people this impacts may turn out to be significant.

    I wouldn’t be surprised if we hear Chertoff parroting Marie Antoinette some day soon - “Let them eat lettuce”.

    As for the “traveler”, if so much as one person gets TB, he ought to be prosecuted. Reckless endangerment is a start, but with this form of TB attempted murder might be more appropriate. Those who know they have HIV who infect others without their knowledge of the disease are prosecuted for just that.

  14. #14
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:50 pm, 24Klady said:

    Methinks there is a lot more to this story? Multiple flights?

    He was either a mule carrying drugs or conducting sightseeing tours for others less proficient in English to their ultimate destinations for employment. Course, Chertoff’s little band of incompetents will never ask the big questions. What was he doing here (with the money to roam the country) and why so many trips back to homebase, and what kind of documents did he present to the people at those cute little counters at airport check-in to be allowed to travel on a U.S. carrier? Just think how many frequent flyer miles he’s racked up.

  15. #15
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:52 pm, zorro said:

    Quick, send Geraldo to the border, please.

  16. #16
    On October 17th, 2007 at 9:56 pm, 24Klady said:

    Zorro #13 - I’m with you, send Geraldomundo anywhere. People who spit are, and should be, banished from any civilized gathering. Or, perhaps he could be persuaded to personally escort the TB guy back to where ever he came from. Must be a story somewhere in there.

  17. #17
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:07 pm, Heartland Perspective said:

    Gee, makes me feel real good about my trip to Mexico this past year.

    This better outrage people in this country. Judging by the reaction to that lawyer who flew to Europe for his wedding earlier this year, I imagine there will be plenty of outrage.

    Thank you reporters at the Washington Times for putting this story out there.

    I’m incredulous.

  18. #18
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:11 pm, Jim M. said:

    I find it interesting that no one has yet announced any destinations, airlines or other details.

    Just where was he, and who needs to take precautions? Will we wait another 7 weeks for that to filter out?

  19. #19
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:12 pm, Glamchild said:

    It’s not just TB…read the Washington Post article about the new drug-resistant strains. Overuse of anti-biotics is only one explanation. Anti-biotics have been overused for many years, yet we are seeing certain diseases, formerly eradicated …..start to reemerge.

    Bringing this Country to its knees: Hospitals closing down, public schools turning into cesspools, as thousands more stream across our open borders….

  20. #20
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:21 pm, shooter said:

    Someone might threaten to spit on you.

    Ahhh, we just love ya Michelle. You are the best. Thx for writing that.
    .
    This TB is bad, but possibly even worse is the fact of tens of thousands of illegals carrying additional horrible diseases around INSIDE THEM. Like hepatitis and other ’stool’ born diseases.
    They live here and have jobs as housekeepers, cooks and nanny’s, and lawn mowers and the diseases are spreading.
    The MSM has been silent on this as well.
    We will have a horrible outbreak of something, soon I fear.

  21. #21
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:27 pm, shooter said:

    links to diseases and illegals
    .
    And this doesn’t even include the legal immigrants that are still ’sick’.

  22. #22
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:54 pm, josetheguerilla said:

    This better outrage people in this country. Judging by the reaction to that lawyer who flew to Europe for his wedding earlier this year, I imagine there will be plenty of outrage.

    It’s only okay to be outraged if it’s an Americans fault, illegal TB is not politically correct.

  23. #23
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:54 pm, fred5676 said:

    Relax on your next commercial flight - 12 to 20 million illegal aliens who never had a background or health check can’t ALL have TB. Some of them are just terrorists.

    DHS has certainly learned from previous experience: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,262604,00.html

    PHOENIX — Fourteen travel agency owners or employees were indicted on human smuggling and other charges, accused of selling airline tickets they thought would be used by illegal immigrants, officials said.

    Authorities said a records analysis showed six travel agencies sold tickets to an estimated 6,800 illegal immigrants in the United States since mid-2005.

  24. #24
    On October 17th, 2007 at 10:58 pm, Jim M. said:

    Just thinking out loud - wonder if the recent blowup with Congressional staffers being advised to get inoculated before their visit to NC had anything to do with this?

  25. #25
    On October 17th, 2007 at 11:03 pm, Yakfisher said:

    This is one of the reasons we have immigration laws and borders in the first place. But some want cheap labor and some want to feel like they’re humanitarians (and some want Democrat votes) so we just choose not to enforce our laws at the risk of our security and the health of our citizens.

    Sad, and scary.

  26. #26
    On October 17th, 2007 at 11:06 pm, josetheguerilla said:

    Instead of walking over the border, now they’re flying first class. I wonder how much frequent flier miles they have?

  27. #27
    On October 17th, 2007 at 11:07 pm, josetheguerilla said:

    Maybe we can us their frequent flier miles to send Dingy Harry to Mexico.

  28. #28
    On October 17th, 2007 at 11:22 pm, LC said:

    Seven weeks! That must be the fastest ever! See, the government CAN make progress!! (I can’t wait to see how long it takes to get reimbursement checks under Hillary-aid.)

  29. #29
    On October 17th, 2007 at 11:26 pm, josetheguerilla said:

    Who needs lettuce trucks? When we have avoinetas. Fly the friendly skies. Cacahuetes anyone?
    Just pass the lechuga everybody!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  30. #30
    On October 17th, 2007 at 11:36 pm, Alphonse said:

    How Eisenhower solved illegal border crossings from Mexico
    He [Eisenhower] then quoted a report in The New York Times, highlighting one paragraph that said: “The rise in illegal border-crossing by Mexican ‘wetbacks’ to a current rate of more than 1,000,000 cases a year has been accompanied by a curious relaxation in ethical standards extending all the way from the farmer-exploiters of this contraband labor to the highest levels of the Federal Government.

    Profits from illegal labor led to the kind of corruption that apparently worried Eisenhower.

  31. #31
    On October 18th, 2007 at 12:09 am, Bruce Hendrix said:

    You know I’d hate to think that it might have to take a deadly epidemic to get the borders tighten up.

  32. #32
    On October 18th, 2007 at 12:16 am, pyhtboss said:

    So can we start impeachment proceedings against Bush for his complete abdication of his Oath of Office? You know, that itty bitty clause about protecting us against all enemies, foreign and domestic. IIRC, there’s no qualifier in there which reads “unless they are from Mexico, UAE or China”

    Let’s just call it what it is: treason.

  33. #33
    On October 18th, 2007 at 1:24 am, davidleerothmann said:

    We had all but wiped out many diseases in this Country. Looks like that is going to change.

    You are correct, Jim and the result is going to horrify people. I have a friend who works in a Los Angeles hospital and she tells me that patients are stumbling in to ER’s from Mexico with MDR TB every day. They are under orders to keep it quiet, but there aren’t anough isolation units in the entire USA to protect us.

    When the outbreak comes, and it is coming, Americans who are used to going to the doctor with a cough and getting a few pills and a shot and told to go home and rest until they feel better are going to be told that they will soon die. Not only that, but they will likely be followed by their spouse, parent, children, and friends and that nothing can be done about it.

    “Buenos Noches, Americanos. Too bad your gobierno es too cowardly to protect you! Instate tuition, por favor.”

    I guess it won’t matter at that point. How can our kids go to college if they are dead?

  34. #34
    On October 18th, 2007 at 2:10 am, cthelight said:

    Anyone happen to notice that when an
    American citizen with TB takes a plane, in what,
    a couple of flights??? IT hits all the major news stations….but hey, did anyone hear about this 76 times guy….don’t think so. Nor did they hear about the military hummers…3 of them crossing the border with machine guns mounted on
    them…and there sit our border patrol with…what…pellets guns. Course, that was not on national news either.
    But hey, we had to hear about freaking
    OJ Simpson and somebody crying about a dog. For gosh’s sake…how is anybody in this country supposed to care about important stuff if they do not read news on a computer?

  35. #35
    On October 18th, 2007 at 2:14 am, cthelight said:

    And yes, TB was basically ERADICATED in
    this country by the mid 1980s. I, too,
    have been in medicine. It was a crowning achievement.
    But you know what, let those guys in
    DC think that getting vaccinated to go
    to a NASCAR race is going to keep them
    healthy…not against this strain of TB..there is not a vaccine for this one
    you pompous pieces of useless politico.

  36. #36
    On October 18th, 2007 at 3:18 am, SpeakEasy said:

    C’mon people. Where is the compassion? They are only spreading the diseases that Americans are unwilling to spread.

    (Hey Geraldo, wanna swap spit with a TB patient?)

    I can’t quite bring myself to wish a dreadfull pandemic on the state and people of California even though it would serve them right. I guess it’s just the compassionate conservative in me. The reasons are many and serious for border control: national security, national health, drug enforcement, etc, etc,etc. Unfortunately, there will have be a 9/11 equivalent event to spur action. Enjoy your diversity California!

  37. #37
    On October 18th, 2007 at 4:16 am, Etan said:

    On October 18th, 2007 at 3:18 am, SpeakEasy said:

    I can’t quite bring myself to wish a dreadfull pandemic on the state and people of California even though it would serve them right.

    A “dreadfull pandemic” would serve them right.

    What may have been Stalin’s only achievement as a human being was his success in deportations techniques of undesirables from the former Soviet Union, which goes to your second point:

    there will have be a 9/11 equivalent event to spur action.

    This would, in fact, be the most opportunistic time for us to carry out huge scale deportations, that would bring a “balance” to the ethnic map of the United States. We would effectively regain the health of America by eliminating the infected minority population”. They should count themselves lucky….

    we have not taken steps that would be morally justifiable in protecting one’s country….

    Yet.

  38. #38
    On October 18th, 2007 at 5:05 am, T J Green said:

    How is it that my 12-year-old is under constant immunization surveillance by local school district officials - though we home school - yet the feds so cavalierly handle this TB threat?

  39. #39
    On October 18th, 2007 at 5:49 am, gayle said:

    Genicide anyone?

  40. #40
    On October 18th, 2007 at 5:50 am, gayle said:

    or is it genecide?

  41. #41
    On October 18th, 2007 at 6:28 am, TMoney said:

    I’m sure HillaryCare will have this little hole filled up faster than FEMA can hit New Orleans after a shower.

    Reprehensible is a good word for the job Homeland Insecurity does.

  42. #42
    On October 18th, 2007 at 6:44 am, Lindsay said:

    As they seem to know which flights this guy was on, the airlines should notify passengers who were exposed to TB.

    Close the borders! What is it going to take? Oh, and I am not surprised as this disease and many others have arrived in our country thanks to the lack of border security.

  43. #43
    On October 18th, 2007 at 7:26 am, Vince said:

    Yawn….. I wake up this morning and I find all kinds of outrage on this blog. It’s enough to make me go back to bed!

    Have any of you read the whole story? There is not enough information to hang Chertoff or charge President Bush with treason! what is the scenario here?

    Mr. foreigner wakes up one morning with TB. I guess the Mexican officials find out about it and they call President Bush and Michael Chertoff and tell them about this guy. The President and Chertoff decide to keep it a secret because……. why? I don’t know! There’s not enough in the news story to let me make a REASONED conclusion! I don’t know, I refuse to get hysterical because then I’ll be accused of being a Democrat!!!!

  44. #44
    On October 18th, 2007 at 7:32 am, meatpieandtatters said:

    Department of Homeland Ineptness and Insecurity?

    And isn’t the Immigration & Naturalization Service actually doing their job? I mean, the illegals are immigrating and naturalizing quite well aren’t they, and doing so without government assistance. Is this evidence of an agency that’s actually effective…or am I just being wildly sarcastic?

  45. #45
    On October 18th, 2007 at 8:05 am, 30 pcs of silver said:

    Illegal immigrants bringing virulent strains of TB to America…a job Americans can’t do…

  46. #46
    On October 18th, 2007 at 9:20 am, xler8bmw said:

    This kind of leads to my belief that has anyone wondered why all of a sudden we have the outbreaks concerning our produce? Wh0 pick the produce?

  47. #47
    On October 18th, 2007 at 9:22 am, Teddy Kennedy said:

    errah Mr. Chertoff, what date is seven weeks after 9/11 or today’s date. Perhaps we can get some boxes delivered to your office by then. Errah . . . Seven weeks seems to be how long it took to fire Brownie!? . . . errah

  48. #48
    On October 18th, 2007 at 9:27 am, Teddy Kennedy said:

    errah Mr. Amaya was here 57 times to partake of S-CHIP program and consult with the errah Democratic Leadership. Everyone is someone’s child errah . . .

  49. #49
    On October 18th, 2007 at 9:29 am, terrig said:

    Again,I contracted the TB germ from an illegal alien student in FL. What is wrong with this country?

  50. #50
    On October 18th, 2007 at 9:48 am, granite said:

    Gayle #40:

    It’s genocide.

    From:

    genus - tribe, class, group, kind, sort
    +
    caedo - cut, kill

  51. #51
    On October 18th, 2007 at 9:51 am, Jim M. said:

    There’s not enough in the news story to let me make a REASONED conclusion!

    Guess you missed this part:

    The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency was warned by health officials on April 16 that the frequent traveler was infected, but it took the Homeland Security officials more than six weeks to issue a May 31 alert to warn its own border inspectors, according to Homeland Security sources who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. Homeland Security took one more week to tell its own Transportation Security Agency.

  52. #52
    On October 18th, 2007 at 11:05 am, Ron Rockstar said:

    Maybe these idiots running Homeland Security thought this was the way to fix the border issue. Seeing as how the guy is a Mexican, they probably figured the folks he was coming into contact with were Mexicans or Illegal Mexican-Americans. Let them all contract TB and hope the border problems solve themselves.

  53. #53
    On October 18th, 2007 at 11:13 am, gayle said:

    Thanks Granite….too early to think.

    The grand scheme is to kill off the citizens…..more money for the coming of the one world government.

    Wonder if that newly discovered bacteria killing kids in highschools…cannot remember the name…..M something, is another disease brought in by illegals.

    There are three football players in NC that now have it.

    Think about the thousands to soon be reported. Wow. It is a nightmare.

  54. #54
    On October 18th, 2007 at 11:14 am, Jim M. said:

    This is from the Washington Times update to the story:

    Other documents reveal that the Mexican government had known for more than five years of the condition of Mr. Armendariz, a businessman from Juarez, a city in the Mexican state of Chihuahua across the Rio Grande from El Paso, Texas. The officials who spoke on that condition of anonymity said, “Information sharing is still at an all-time low, if not nonexistent, in issues such as these.”

    “For the first five years, he self-medicated and was noncompliant [with] Mexican State Health Department treatments. … His father and sister both died of TB in Chihuahua,” an internal DHS e-mail states.

    Mexico is our friend.

  55. #55
    On October 18th, 2007 at 11:33 am, Glamchild said:

    If it was just TB, I wouldn’t be so worried. You can’t even imagine what it is like to work in an emergency room in a place like, say, Los Angeles-Mexico. It’s beyond third world conditions, and these new viruses and infections coming out of nowhere. The thousands (millions?) of anchor babies being born into newly ineradicable diseases that rip through the general population…

    BOTTOM LINE:

    Either we do mass departations now—or face mass quarantines later.

    Take your pick.

  56. #56
    On October 18th, 2007 at 12:21 pm, Etan said:

    #55

    On October 18th, 2007 at 11:33 am, Glamchild said:

    do mass departations now—or face mass quarantines later.

    The problem, Glamchild, is (1) they they keep coming back over once they are rounded up and exiled back to Mexico, and (2) lack of information from the Mexican government regarding the issue. Disease is a serious enough matter to consider your second option.

    Quarantines should be established as resettlement facilities for disease carrying Mexicans in this country before, not after, Americans become infected. This would be temporary, until we solve the problem of them coming across, and we’ve accomplished a successful purge.

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