federal government is to provide for the common defense. part of that is secure in the sovereignty and integrity of our territorial borders. we need to take it as far as we can until we don t control the house anymore. i support the president with respect to this. we appropriated in the last two years $1.6 billion or border security. democrats support that. we think it should be done in a smart way. use technology. use sensors come use drugs and more personnel in a way that the fact days. arthel: doug mckelway joins us live with more reaction from inside the beltway. reporter: high, transport to the capitol building is quiet. members have departed for the holidays with no resolution in sight for the border while fight or government shutdown blame game. it fell apart saturday with dividing republican information hard-liners.
the security landscape now days. biometrics an important word to remember for those of us tired of endless airport lines. biometrics are now being tested at major airports in europe, at gatwick airport, officials tested a program where they scanned passengers irises instead of using boarding passes. in the future automated boarding gates could scan your ticket and passport. unmanned exit lanes are also in the works that use sensors and locks to make sure no one sneaks into a secure area through an exit. baggage screening might be done automatically and at international arrival terminals at this one near washington, there s the global entry program for those who sign up, machines scan fingerprints and passports for customs and immigration. the best thing about this program for an officer is it takes low risk travelers and gets them through our process that much quicker, which would give me more time with high risk travelers. one of the principal ideas of biometrics is to streamli