From the No Shit, Sherlock files—

H. Steven Blum, the head of the National Guard under Bush, told the Washington Post last week that troop deployment might not be the best response to the border crisis. He said he had yet to hear clear reasoning supporting the initiative.

“There may be many other organizations that might more appropriately be called upon,” he said. “If you’re talking about search and rescue, maintaining the rule of law or restoring conditions back to normal after a natural disaster or a catastrophe, the Guard is superbly suited to that. I’m not so sure that what we’re dealing with in scope and causation right now would make it the ideal choice.”

Blum said that the Guard might be of some help as part of a larger solution, but he emphasized that the situation at the border is complex.

“Merely sending the Guard to the border is not a panacea for the myriad complex problems of the current situation,” he said.