U.S., Mexico must consult on security, official says

Louie Gilot / El Paso Times
El Paso Times

Consulting with Mexico on border fencing and other border security projects "is not only a good idea but the only way to go about it," Carlos De Icaza, Mexico's ambassador to the U.S. said Monday in El Paso.

The idea of consulting with Mexico is controversial among U.S. conservatives who see it as compromising the security and sovereignty of the United States.

Republican House members have scheduled a hearing in El Paso Thursday titled "Should Mexico hold veto power over U.S. border security decisions?"

The title refers to a provision in the Senate immigration bill, S. 2611, which would require consultation with Mexico on plans to build a border fence.

But Ambassador De Icaza, who was in El Paso on Monday to attend the opening reception for the third annual Border Security Conference at UTEP, said binational consultation already occurs and with positive results, in human-trafficking investigations for instance.

US citizens in Mexico have no rights or say in any government issues, cannot own property nor can they even work in the country and yet, Mexican officials continue to make demands of the US government. And worse, people are actually listening to this! -mm