Here comes my greatest fear, the word "snipers" has been associated with the California 'Civilian Border Patrol' efforts planned for July...

The two groups spearheading the effort have had a falling-out, officials with those organizations said Tuesday.

Chino resident Andy Ramirez heads up an organization called Friends of the Border Patrol, and Oceanside resident James Chase leads a group called the United States Border Patrol Auxiliary. Both anti-illegal-immigration groups are putting together volunteers to fan out along the border this summer, observe illegal immigrants crossing into the United States, and report them to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Chase's will be on the border starting July 18, while Ramirez's group will begin its watch August 1, the men say.

This month, Ramirez posted a press release on his Web site, stating: "We...informed Mr. Chase that we shall not have anything to do with his organization under any circumstance."

On Tuesday, Ramirez said he refused to be associated with Chase or his organization because he doesn't like Chase's approach or the use of the Border Patrol in his group's name.

Ramirez said Tuesday that he has several issues with Chase.

Ramirez said he began avoiding Chase's phone calls after an April conversation in which Chase, according to Ramirez, mentioned the use of snipers.

"That scared the daylights out of me," Ramirez said Tuesday. "We decided we weren't going to have anything to do with him."

This is what happens when you allow a bunch of 'hot headed', 'pots and pan bangers' driving the bus on an issue as sensitive and complex as illegal immigration.

When all you do is hammer illegal immigrants and immigration night after night on your talk show, daily in your column or on the campaign stump...you create an atmosphere ripe for extreme behavior, and rhetoric like this.

The President called these groups vigilantes, well...with talk of snipers, isn't that exactly what we have developing?