The agreement reached during the recent meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Mexican President Andres Manual Lopez Obrador is heartening. The two leaders released a joint statement on July 12 that expressed a commitment to improving border infrastructure to improve the flow of trade and people while making it more secure against encroachment. They pledged to “jointly combat inflation by accelerating the facilitation of bilateral trade and reducing trade costs.”
Actions toward that end can surely help the economies of border regions such as the Rio GrandeValley, as well as both countries in general.
Now we need our lawmakers in Congress to take the legislative steps, and allocate the necessary resources, to bring those promises to fruition.
Biden noted that his Build Back Better legislation includes 26 major construction and modernization projects at our ports of entry that total $3.4 billion. AMLO, as Lopez Amador is popularly known, committed spending $1.5 billion over the next two years on infrastructure projects on the south side of the border.
The benefits of such improvements are obvious. Improving border crossings and reducing wait times pays off in more efficient trade delivery that gets goods to market faster and with reduced waste. We need only look at the disaster created by the lengthy freight truck inspections Gov. Greg Abbott ordered in April to see the effects. Delays caused by those unnecessary inspections — the trailers already had passed inspection at the border crossings — led to billions of dollars in losses due to missed shipments, spoiled produce and higher consumer prices.
Biden and AMLO also committed to creating opportunities on both sides of the border for workers, creating a work force that is “better educated, more competitive and better trained to meet the needs of the 21st century economy.”
They also pledged to maintain strong border security policies while improving opportunities and the flow of legal immigration. Such support is sorely needed, especially in areas like the Valley where a lack of workers has affected local farmers’ ability to harvest their crops, and businesses across the country that have had to reduce production, business hours or even close their doors because they can’t hire enough workers.
Biden promised to improve conditions by increasing the number of U.S. work visas that would enable foreign nationals, from Mexico as well as other countries, to work in this country and help fill our workforce needs.
“This is a proven strategy that fuels economic growth as well as reduces irregular immigration,” Biden said during their joint meeting.
Creation of a binational working group also was announced to review both countries’ labor needs, ensure worker protections and fight human smuggling.
We trust that leaders of our two countries, especially lawmakers that must codify policies that bring the presidents’ promises to reality, share that sentiment, and dedicate their efforts toward actions that improve, rather than impede, the common goals of our two countries.
Our successful future — both locally and nationally — depends on it.
