There won't be any more blimps at the southern border for a while at least.
At least not ones run by private contractors.
South Texas congressman Henry Cuellar of Laredo says the use of the blimps as currently managed has become too expensive to continue.
The agency had budgeted 30-million-dollars a year for the program. The government owns the blimps, and does the surveillance work, but pays government contractors millions of dollars just to raise and lower the blimps each day.
Cuellar says local Border Patrol officials like the program and they may explore other options, including having border agents operate the blimps.
photo: Getty Images