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AFP - Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger suggested California could ease its crowded prison system by sending thousands of undocumented inmates to specially built jails in Mexico.

Speaking to reporters at the Sacramento Press Club, Schwarzenegger said California could ease its strained finances by a billion dollars if 20,000 illegal immigrants currently held in the state were housed across the border.

"I think that we can do so much better in the prison system alone if we can go and take, inmates for instance, the 20,000 inmates that are illegal immigrants that are here and get them to Mexico," Schwarzenegger said.

"Think about it -- if California gives Mexico the money. Not 'Hey, you take care of them, these are your citizens'. No. Not at all.

"We pay them to build the prison down in Mexico. And then we have those undocumented immigrants down there in prison. It would half the costs to build the prison and run the prison. We could save a billion dollars right there that could go into higher education."

Schwarzenegger's remarks come as California prepares for the latest in a long line of state budget crises.

Schwarzenegger declared a fiscal emergency earlier this month, warning severe cuts were necessary to stem a 19.9-billion-dollar deficit.

California has some of the most overcrowded prisons in the United States, with an estimated 170,000 inmates housed in facilities designed for 100,000 people, according to 2007 figures.

Schwarzenegger said he believed the financial burden of California's prisons could be eased if the private sector moved into the industry.

"I think that there is no reason why we should have just state employees and public prisons," Schwarzenegger said. "Why shouldn't we have private prisons and private prisons competing with public prisons?

"I don't want to go and get rid of public prisons, not at all. It's not an attack on their labor union even though they may take it as such.




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Was just talking to a couple, one guy was working for Calimex in Rosarito pushing shopping carts.. I was in the car waiting for the wife to do her shopping..

Had the windows rolled down, with both the dogs checking folks out.. well, this fella that was collecting shopping carts and pushing them back to be used again, came over to the car and said something in Spanish.. the dogs didn't bark.. so no "spiny sense" from either so he was OK in my book.. said I don't speak Spanish.. then I started talking a mile a minute in English..

Had been kicked out, had been in trouble (had "ink" which was definitely prison ink) said that he had finally gotten this job, with Calimex about 14 months ago, after all most starving to death.. but it was all good and he had a small place to live now, and things were not too bad for him at this time..

Another fella came up and started talking too.. he too was from the States and had been kicked out too .. "dropped at the border by bus upon release from prison"

They both said that literally thousands and thousands of guys have been deported from the States in the past couple of years and it is continuing ..

The first guy was born in Mexico, but his family moved to the States when he was 5 or 6, lived out in Norco and went to school there.. had gotten into trouble a number of times.. and it was found out that he was not supposed to be here.. and hence he was dropped at the SY border and told to keep going... and not come back.

Not sure exactly how many, but I see a lot of "guys" selling papers, washing window on cars and a lot of other "hustles" to get by in Tijuana when we go through town..

Just a comment on a event which would appear to have already started in California, when they are RELEASED, and most likely any place where Agency can get a handle on the origin of the individual and make a call