Homeland Security Secretary Janet
Napolitano says federal budget cuts may not hit border security as hard as she
previously thought.
Napolitano met with law enforcement and
business leaders in Houston Thursday. She said a new budget from Congress should reduce the need to cut
overtime or furlough agents working on the U.S.-Mexico
border -- and that the number of border agents should be back to normal when the
2014 fiscal year budget goes into effect.
Napolitano previously warned
sequestration would mean the equivalent of losing about 5,000 border agents.
Today, the Secretary’s set to visit Douglas and Tucson, along
with U.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner Thomas Winkowski and
National Drug Control Policy Director Gil Kerlikowske, who met with a group of Arizona mayors
yesterday.
