A jump start at the border.

Last June, President George W. Bush announced a plan to reduce illegal immigration along the southern border of the United States. It seems to be working. The number of people caught trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border has dropped 27 percent since "Operation Jumpstart" began. In some areas, it has dropped much more. In Yuma, Arizona, for instance, it is 62 percent lower than it was a year ago.

Keeping people from illegally entering the country is the job of the U.S. Border Patrol. In May 2006, Bush set a goal of increasing the number of Border Patrol agents by 50 percent, from the current 12,000 to 18,000. Until that goal is achieved, there is Operation Jumpstart, which has sent thousands of National Guard troops to the southern border. The troops cannot make arrests. Instead, they are helping the Border Patrol spot illegal immigrants. They are also aiding with administration and fence construction. The troops will remain at the border until the new Border Patrol agents have been hired and trained.

The President's target date for hiring all of the new agents is September 30, 2008. "Six thousand is just unprecedented," a Border Patrol chief told The Arizona Daily Star. "I don't think any agency in the country has had to hire that many officers in that short a time. ... But we'll get there."