US Waives Laws To Accelerate Completion Of Border Fence

CHULA VISTA, CA - APRIL 02: A border patrol vehicle enters an area where multiple fences and steel walls form a kind of "no-man's land" on the border of Tijuana, Mexico and the US on April 2, 2008 in the Otay Mountain Wilderness Area southwest of Chula Vista, California. Congress has given US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Michael Chertoff the power to waive the federal laws to speed up building the border barriers without delays for environmental impact studies and hearings. Two waivers allowing the DHS to ignore the laws are the most expansive to date, encompassing 470 miles of land across California, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. Conservative Republicans are praising the time-saving tactic but wildlife and conservation groups are reacting with dismay that pristine natural lands, wildlife, and cultural sites could suffer without protective oversight. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)