The top American on the International Joint Commission has been fired by President Bush, and the reason may be a retaining wall in the Washington border town of Blaine.

The city of Blaine doesn't require a building permit for a wall four-feet high or shorter. The wall is right around four feet.

The top American and the top Canadian on the boundary commission both say the fence must come down because it is within ten feet of the border line. They say the "no obstructions within ten feet rule" is established by a 1925 treaty.

Shirley-Ann Leu owns the property the wall sits on, and says the wall is not a security issue.

"It's a retaining wall to stop the dirt from going down into the ditch," she said.

But this is not just any wall; it's on the U.S.-Canada border. Federal officials say that's illegal.

"It's on our property," Leu said. "Don't you have a right, as an American, to your own property? You paid for it."

But she got two letters from the official International Boundary Commission telling her that according to a 1925 treaty, fences don't make good neighbors. Federal officials told her she had 45 days to tear it down. The letter was signed, 'Dennis Schornack.'

Apparently the president doesn't agree - he's fired Dennis Schornack. Schornack says he can't be fired. Reportedly, that will be decided in the same lawsuit the Seattle federal court is hearing over the wall itself.

Why would George W. Bush get involved in this? Are the Leus really, really big time Republicans?

"I'm a Canadian," Leu told KOMO 4 News, "born and raised in Calgary, Alberta."

Maybe her husband, Herbert, is more GOP.

"I'm an American, yeah," he said. "Actually, I haven't voted for quite a while now."

The Leus say maybe the president thinks like they do - private property is important and that's why the wall is no big deal.

The Leus say their attorney Brian Hodges from the Pacific Legal Foundation told them about Schornack's firing, but they say he and they aren't sure what that means in the legal battle over the wall. They hope it's over, but they don't know.