Congress passes delayed security bills

WASHINGTON, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- Formerly delayed domestic and border security bills have been fast-tracked in both houses of Congress ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.

The Senate voted 98-0 Thursday to approve a six-year, $5 billion port security bill that requires radiation detectors to be installed the largest ports and pushes shippers and ports around the world to more effectively guard containers against hidden weapons, The New York Times reported Friday.

The House of Representatives earlier approved a bill by a 283 to 138 vote that calls for the construction of a two-layer fence along 700 miles of the Mexican border to enforce immigration and prevent terrorist entry into the United States.

The Times said the debate on those and other forthcoming security votes has been deeply partisan, with Democrats and Republicans struggling to blame one another for the measures being delayed.

The newspaper said Democrats have been attempting to add provisions into security bills that would put into effect billions of dollars worth of recommendations from the Sept. 11 commission. However, Republicans have blocked the amendments and blasted them as attempts to kill the legislation.