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House leaders in Congress have postponed indefinitely a vote on a border security bill, known as the “Secure Our Borders First Act.”

The bill would penalize the Department of Homeland Security if it fails to stop all illegal border crossings within five years.

The postponement comes as Congress faces a February 27th deadline to fund DHS.

The border bill is sponsored by newly-named Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul.

He’s a Texas Republican who calls the bill the “strongest border security bill” ever.

But Democrats, some conservative Republicans and union that represents U.S. Border Patrol agents disagree.

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For Jon Kalb, each step on the desert floor brings a measure of excitement with the possibility of discovering something new.

A retired research geologist with the Vertebrate Paleontology Laboratory (Texas Memorial Museum) at the University of Texas, Kalb has been visiting Big Bend for over a decade conducting paleontological surveys.

“Big Bend, with its arid landscape and minimal vegetation, is an ideal place to look for artifacts and fossils,” Kalb says.

The intensely faulted terrain of the Sierra Viejas stretching northward from Candelaria is reminiscent of Africa’s Great Rift Valley where Kalb spent much of his professional life.

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Never miss a city council meeting? Always finding interesting stories in the Big Bend? Go to a lot of community events or concerts? If you’re interested in sharing your knowledge and experience with Marfa Public Radio listeners, become one of our volunteer Community Correspondents.

We’re looking for engaged citizens from across the Big Bend. A Community Correspondent assists Marfa Public Radio with news gathering and producing stories from the community you live in.
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