National Guard headlines may not match front lines

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Gov. Rick Perry visited Texas National Guard troops in Austin Wednesday morning, calling them "the tip of the spear" protecting America from "narco-terrorists" pouring over the Rio Grande into Texas.

And it's not just in Texas where Perry is boasting about Texans securing the border by ordering up 1,000 guard members and a contingent of state troopers.

Perry returned recently from barnstorming Iowa, the state that casts the first votes each presidential primary season, boasting about Texans standing sentinel against illegal border crossers.

"If the federal government won't do it's duty, the state of Texas will," he told one crowd days ago, echoing a theme he's used time and time again: If Washington won't protect Texas citizens, Austin will step in and do the job.

It's the same theme he's also used on national news shows, where Perry chides President Barack Obama for not sending more resources to the Lone Star State for border protection.

"I don't believe he particularly cares whether or not the border of the United States is secure, and that's the reason there's been this lack of effort, this lack of focus, this lack of resources," Perry told ABC's This Week in a July interview.

The Guard is needed, he said, to deter criminals and drug traffickers, because the U.S. Border Patrol has been overwhelmed by a surge of unaccompanied minors who have entered the country illegally.

And for all the talk, you might think that troops have already lined the banks of the Rio Grande stopping those who would cross illegally.

ABC-13 spent last week along the Rio Grande talking to key players in the escalating border drama and no one has seen any National Guard troops.

"We heard 1,000 were coming," said Rene Perez, who runs the South Texas Emergency Care Foundation ambulance team. He said he hasn't seen any troops.

McAllen Mayor Jim Darling said the Guard wasn't needed in his border city.

"I don't need the Guard," Darling said. "I have a safe city."

And Alma Gonzales, who works at La Posada Providencia shelter near the Texas-Mexico border in San Benito, said she has not seen the Guard, either.

"I heard on the news they are in the Valley, but I have not seen them," she said.

That's because they are still training.

When Perry announced his plans on July 21 to deploy the National Guard, he said the troops would be sent to the Mexican border within 30 days, integrated into the Department of Public Safety's "Operation Strong Safety."

But now Perry is saying he's not saying when the Guard will be deployed.

"We don't actually send the signals to the opposition when we're going to be in place or for that matter what tactics we're going to use or what technology we're going to be using," Perry said Wednesday. "I'm worried about their safety. I'm not worried about anybody's TV ratings."

When the Guard finally does arrive, they will come without the ability to detain anyone crossing the border illegally. Troops will only man observation stations along the border, and call law enforcement or the Border Patrol when they see illegal border crossings.

The Guard will also aid the DPS by flying helicopters to search for and report illegal border activity.

On Tuesday, RickPAC, the new political action committee formed by Perry, unveiled a border security video. The ad features Perry urging President Obama and federal officials to secure the nation's border.

Perry, a Republican who's eyeing a possible 2016 presidential run, also rejected the idea that the deployment was politically motivated.

"The idea that what we're doing is politics versus protecting the people of Texas and the people of this country is just false on its face," he said.

Perry's comments come on the heels of a state Senate Finance Committee hearing that revealed that escalating costs of Perry's border-enforcement surge by state police and the National Guard will run out in October, despite earlier predictions that the cash could last through the end of the year.

State officials estimated that it will cost at least $18 million a month to continue the ongoing DPS and National Guard campaign.