Is there anything more maddening that the Congress voting to send military aid to corrupt Mexico? It's bad enough to use American tax dollars to buy crime-fighting equipment for a country wealthy enough to pay for it outright, but the Merida Initiative sends valuable materiel to a hostile neighbor that could be far better utilized by our own law enforcement officers: U.S. funds for Mexico drug war frustrate Texas sheriffs [Houston Chronicle, July 2, 2008].

Besieged Texas sheriffs vowed Wednesday to press the White House and Congress to deliver emergency assistance to law enforcement officers battling drug cartels along the Mexican border to match the $400 million on its way to Mexico.

The sheriffs said they were frustrated that President Bush and Congress agreed to provide assistance to Mexico, as part of the Merida Initiative, without offering additional federal help to their departments. [...]

Implementation of the Merida Initiative is "really disappointing and disheartening because Washington seems totally oblivious to what we're facing on the Mexican border," said Webb County Sheriff Rick Flores, chairman of the 19-county Texas Border Sheriff's Coalition.

"If they allocate resources and money to Mexico, they should also consider protecting our side of the border first."

Amen to that. As usual, Washington has everything upside down, handing out freebies to a corruption-ridden neighbor while short-changing our own people.