Home of Today's Common Sense

Published Brownsville Herald May 23, 2011

On May 14 Tony Martinez was elected mayor with a resounding majority of all the votes cast. All the other candidates together did not garner as many.
It is very apparent that the community wanted new leadership with fresh clear ideas to move the community out of the rut of suspicion, the smell of possible corruption that wafted through City Hall.
We are captive to a criminal reservation to our south with little hope of relief in the near future.
Perhaps our new mayor is a sign of better things to happen.
There also are hints that changes at the federal level may be coming around.
President Obama opened a first little door on May 14, by announcing plans to speed up domestic oil drilling. This is reported to include such things as lifting the 20-year ban on drilling off the Virginia coastline and allowing access to parts of the Arctic Ocean off Alaska’s North Slope.
The president also hopes to reduce our reliance on foreign oil by opening up large swaths of U.S. coastal waters to oil and natural gas exploration, such as in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. This sounds like some sweetness might find its way to South Texas, which might improve the situation in Port Isabel as well as our own Keppel AmFELS. I hope our own freshman Congressman Blake Farenthold can inform the administration of how much an improved and more viable economy at the border can reduce problems to the north.
Lower prices at the pump will inject a little medicine in the sickness everywhere.
The issues do not change!
It is a shame but with but rare exceptions since I started writing this column, the first political commentary of each new year has related to our federal public officials being seen as doing something — anything — to solve immigration, improve jobs and improve the economy, though mostly fixing immigration and improving the economy were always the main issues. It is amazing, but it took until this month for President Obama’s team, in his re-election campaign, to figure out that things won’t get better without some guidance.
A step in the right direction is that the administration has begun pointing to the Republicans’ weakness in the concept that the “border must be secured first” before other reforms can be crafted. Obama pointed out that his administration has increased the number of border agents in El Paso to the highest number ever; it’s deported the most undocumented migrants ever, and is working closely with Mexico on drug cartel violence.
Further, administration officials claim to have achieved the goal of screening 100 percent of all rail shipments entering Mexico for guns and money.
They now can say they serious about immigration reform when it is clearly defined as a serious problem. It is quite clear to all of us that there is a large need for lowwage labor to do jobs that many just will not submit to. These include jobs in industries that include agribusiness, meat processors and the like, and also include us folks, U.S. consumers — you and me. Yes, “those people” who have crossed our borders without documentation are helping the single mother, and the family where both parents must work just to keep the family together. You don’t need to employ an illegal landscaper or nanny to reap the benefits, but it sure helps.
It is definitely clear that if we want to keep daily costs low and also want to see our laws respected, we need comprehensive immigration reform. That means new policies to allow legal entry to guest workers, and a path to temporary and then permanent residency that can lead to citizenship for many qualified illegal migrants who already are here.
The uneducated have nearly finished learning and I believe that means new policies to allow for a sensible path for temporary workers and a path to citizenship for those who have earned their way might not be far off.
Clearly it cannot happen on fiscal grounds alone. It would be easier and possibly politically safer to pass it on to next administration, but we should let the president know that he would be better off to set aside the ducking and weaving and lead firmly, changing the policies and priorities within his administration. It is the only way to safe, sane success.
I am genuinely optimistic as I see definite upward movements in the U.S. economy, and the world economy can expect another strong year of growth in 2011. According to our annual economic forecast, the United States can expect a substantial acceleration in real gross domestic product growth over the next two years to a 4 percent pace by mid-2012.
Locally, we need to find a way to avoid being trapped to the south by Mexico. There is a busy economy south of there in Central America and Cuba, and our native skills and experiences have prepared us perfectly to capitalize on the opportunities and supply their needs.
There is a suitable ship available — think about it!