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. - --- MAP posted-by: Doc-Hawk