WASHINGTON TIMES

The Department of Homeland Security spent $20 million on a "virtual fence" to better secure 28 miles of the Arizona-Mexican border but has no way to measure its effectiveness and never consulted with the field agents who will use the system before it was installed, two House subcommittees learned today.

During a hearing at which some members angrily challenged department officials to say how much it will cost to secure the entire border and when that effort will be completed, U.S. Border Patrol Chief David V. Aguilar acknowledged that the agency does not "have the means" to measure how many people are crossing illegally into the United States under the new system at the project site.

But Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., New Jersey Democrat, described as "unacceptable" delays in the Project 28 project, along with ongoing efforts to secure the nation's borders.

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