Activists on both sides of the immigration issue say President Bush’s plan to send thousands of National Guard troops to the Mexican border isn’t immigration reform but a propaganda move to regain the support of his conservative base.

Bush, in a speech to the nation Monday, proposed using the troops to support the Border Patrol while it builds resources for securing the 2,000-mile line between the U.S. and Mexico. The Senate this week is hammering out a bill that would give some of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants already in the country a chance to become United States citizens. The House of Representatives has passed a bill that would make felons of illegal immigrants and impose criminal penalties on those who provide them aid. Tim Bueler, a spokesman for the Minuteman Project, the self-appointed volunteer border patrol, said a few thousand National Guard troops won’t get the job done. “We thank him for taking our lead, but he’s pandering to his conservative base just for show,” Bueler said. The president is pretending to take a tough stance on the border so he can give amnesty to the illegal immigrants here, Bueler added.