60 Minutes: Operation Lone Star

On Sunday, 60 Minutes aired a report on Operation Lone Star. See below (1:50-14:56):

There’s a corresponding 60 Minutes Overtime segment: Patrolling the border with a Texas state trooper.

Cecilia Vega is the reporter behind both segments, either/both of which would be great for your crimmigration course.

The first video offers striking visuals–mass border crossings, the physical barriers imposed by Texas, how easily those barriers are breached, the detritus left behind by migrants. Vega speaks both with Gov. Abbott as well as a former head of the Border Patrol.

The second video, as its title suggests, focuses on state enforcement away from the border. Vega accompanies a state trooper as she looks for evidence of “people smuggling.” Vega states: “When Trooper Gooding is out on patrol she’s looking for one thing primarily, and that is smugglers. Human traffickers.” This is a great segment for talking about mission drift–what highway patrol traditionally has looked for (highway safety) vs. what they’re currently enforcing (immigration laws).

-KitJ