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WASHINGTON—The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed an amendment unanimously that would increase the number of border patrol agents by 2,000 without increasing discretionary spending. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Chairman of the Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship subcommittee, is an original co-sponsor of the measure. U.S. Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and John Ensign (R-Nev.) are the sponsors of the amendment to the Budget Resolution, which is expected to pass late Thursday night or early Friday morning."For too long the federal government has simply not lived up to its responsibilities to deal with border issues and has left that to local and state government," Cornyn said. "What this does is it reinforces our commitment to border security. In a post-9/11 world, we simply have to insist that the federal government live up to its responsibilities along the border, so that we can secure our border from those who want to come here to harm us, but at the same time leave the border accessible to those who want to engage in mutually beneficial commercial activities."Congress passed the Intelligence reform bill last year, signed by President Bush, calling for an additional 2,000 border patrols agents. This amendment provides $352 million to fund that number without increasing discretionary spending. The funding is budget neutral because it will be offset by reductions elsewhere in the discretionary budget."Our trade relationship with Mexico is very important and has created a lot of jobs. But we simply have to do a better job cracking down on illegal immigration and on those vulnerabilities which now make us open and accessible to terrorists," Cornyn added. "The fact is we’re playing catch up in this area and we still have a long way to go."Cornyn noted that we are beginning to employ new technology such as ground sensors and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other technology to help get control of the border. "In my trips to the Rio Grande Valley, Laredo, South Texas and El Paso we still have a very long way to go. Our border patrol is outmanned and under equipped and we simply have a responsibility to make sure that they have everything they need to take on and accomplish the difficult task we’ve asked them to do."Cornyn co-chaired a hearing on Monday titled "Strengthening Enforcement and Border Security: The 9/11 Commission Staff Report on Terrorist Travel," to examine the need for better training for border inspectors, the importance of ensuring document security and integrity, and finding and closing gaps in the visa system. It was the first in a series of hearings on "Strengthening Enforcement" planned by Cornyn.