If this is happening once a week, why aren’t we hearing more about it?

Four Mexican army soldiers entered southern Arizona and pointed their rifles at a U.S. Border Patrol agent early this week, the Border Patrol said.

The incident Sunday was the Mexican military’s 43rd incursion across the U.S. border since October, the agency said. However, it was unusual because firearms were involved. The Border Patrol and the Mexican government are investigating, Border Patrol spokesman Mike Scioli said.

The soldiers held their weapons on the agent for several minutes until he identified himself in Spanish, whereupon they lowered their guns and walked back across a gap in the fence, Scioli said.

In Washington, D.C., State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos said the encounter “stemmed from a momentary misunderstanding as to the exact location of the U.S.-Mexican border.”

The Mexican army has told the Border Patrol it knew of an incident involving its soldiers, but it did not confirm the details. In years past, the Border Patrol has arrested Mexican soldiers who crossed the border, then typically released them back to Mexico.

The most immediate problem here is that the US State Department needs to hire non-idiots to speak for the agency and move folks like Gallegos somewhere safe.  He said that it stemmed from a misunderstanding of where the border was, but when they realized they were dealing with the Border Patrol they walked back across “the fence.” That’s like the “Border Fence.”

Exactly why would the Mexican Army have soldiers on the border?  I’m not aware that the Mexican government is trying to stop criminals from fleeing their corrupt government.  Perhaps they are watching for smugglers bringing cash or weapons into Mexico.  But if that’s the case we need to ask them to stay on their own side of the border. 

Having your army cross the border and engage public safety officers in another country has often been construed as an act of war.  They shouldn’t ought to be doing that.