Pubdate: Tue, 08 Aug 2000
Source: El Paso Times (TX)
Copyright: 2000 El Paso Times
Contact:  P.O.Box 20, El Paso, Texas 79999
Fax: (915) 546-6415
Website:  http://www.borderlandnews.com/
Author: Diana Washington Valdez

BORDER CZAR IDEA IS GOOD, REYES SAYS

U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas, says he supports Mexican President-elect
Vicente Fox's proposal for "a border czar" as well as the elimination of the
U.S. certification process tied to Mexico's progress against the drug war.

"I hope he presents his proposals when he visits President Clinton and Vice
President Al Gore and Texas Governor George Bush," Reyes said.

Fox wants Mexico to appoint a "border czar" to focus on binational issues
such as immigration, drug-trafficking and the environment. It would be the
first time a high-level Mexican official who answers to the president would
be in charge of border matters.

Reyes said Fox's border-czar proposal is similar to one promoted by U.S.
drug czar Barry McCaffrey.

"His (McCaffrey's) border-czar idea was not just for drugs ... it was for
everything else related to the border as well," Reyes said. "We need someone
(at the border) with jurisdiction and supervisory authority. It would be
beneficial to those of us (on) the border."

Fox plans to visit Clinton and Gore on Aug. 24 and Bush on Aug. 25. Fox also
wants to see labor move freely among the NAFTA countries -- Canada, Mexico
and the United States.

In Agreement

Reyes said he agrees that the U.S. government needs to end the unilateral
drug-certification process.

Each year, the U.S. president presents a passing or failing grade for Mexico
and other countries on their anti-drug efforts. Decertification means the
potential loss of trade benefits and access to international loans.

"It's a process that has become overly politicized and no longer serves its
purpose," Reyes said. "If we don't end (it), then we should at least add
ourselves to the mix, and let (an international body) do the certification,
to give credibility to the process."

Actually, proponents of free trade envisioned such a free flow of labor when
they promoted the North American Free Trade Agreement, Reyes said.

"It's not a new concept, that was the intent of NAFTA, to equalize and
balance the (economic) relationships among Mexico, Canada and the United
States," he said.

Goals Attainable

Newt Gingrich, architect of the "Republican Revolution," recently told
Notimex news service that eliminating certification and allowing Mexican
workers' access to U.S. jobs (to meet unfilled employer needs) were
attainable goals.

Fox said he would like to see North America operate like the European Union.
However, Gingrich said the European model is too bureaucratic and that the
NAFTA countries could come up with a more efficient system.

Critics of Fox's open-borders proposals fear that Mexico's comparatively low
wages (U.S. minimum wage is $5.15 per hour vs. Mexico's average minimum wage
of $3 to $4 a day), would result in a mass flight of Mexican workers to the
United States. Reyes said the economic disparities pose a great challenge.
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