Protesters outside U.S. Sen. John McCain's office in downtown Tucson.Listen
The bill U.S. Senator John McCain sponsored directs federal agencies such as the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Interior to provide Border Patrol access to federal lands.
“It’s basically another violation of environmental protection of sacred sites and of all kinds of things,” said David Eisenberg, one of dozens who protested outside McCain’s Tucson office downtown on Wednesday.
Under McCain’s bill, U.S. Customs and Border Protection would be allowed to “routinely patrol and deploy surveillance” to federal land.
“I am also proud of legislation I introduced earlier this year to get the federal government out of the way of Border Patrol agents working every day to secure our border,” McCain said in a statement. “This legislation would cut unnecessary red tape and enable Border Patrol agents to have access to all federally managed land in Southwest Arizona so they can perform their jobs effectively and keep our communities safe.”
Border Patrol officials said the agency does not comment on pending legislation.
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