EDINBURG — A group of men caught up over coffee and kolaches yesterday morning as they waited for their voices to be heard by their senator.
One hiked up his jeans while tucking in his checkered button down, about to declare cautious optimism.
“Well,” the man said, “let’s see what the government can help us with today.”
Minutes later, Sen. Ted Cruz walked up the stairs at J&D Produce and into a boardroom to meet with about 25 farmers and agriculture industry workers. It was the first stop of a Valley-wide visit, which included meetings, tours, an employee town hall and Cruz breaking one of his cardinal rules.
His visit here is part of a blitz across the state — Cruz will appear in 20 Texas cities by month’s end.
But the agriculture crew, which mostly identified as conservatives, had questions for Cruz, and he appeared interested. However, he didn’t always have answers.
“Thing are hanging in the balance right now,” Cruz told the group. “We’re sitting here in August and not a whole lot has been accomplished.”
He discussed the failed Obamacare repeal, which he said he believes is close to happening sooner than outsiders may think. Cruz asked about visa programs the group uses, and how their labor force has been affected by severe drops in undocumented immigrants crossing into the United States, which Cruz called a significant victory for the Trump Administration. But immigration reform and visa programs, which multiple people told Cruz need to be streamlined, are deeply important to these farmers.
Immigration reform doesn’t seem likely in the next four years, Cruz told them. However, he said he wants to make their jobs easier by lifting federal regulations, just as he told a shrimp facility in Brownsville later on Tuesday.
In between those two stops, Cruz first toured Royal Technologies, which supplies components to companies such as Toyota and Steelcase. Company President Jim Vander Kolk even flew in for the occasion. Cruz toured the plant floor, where he was surprised by the cleanliness of the facility. Afterward, he conducted a roughly 75-person, employee town hall.
Cruz then made his inaugural visit to the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge, the most robust bridge in the region. And Cruz couldn’t help but crack a joke about Pharr Mayor Ambrosio “Amos” Hernandez’s attire — he’s a surgeon and often wears scrubs to formal functions, such as at city commission meetings and when hosting official visitors.
But the bridge impressed Cruz, as did the creativity of drug traffickers, which Customs and Border Protection officials explained during a tour of their port where they inspect cargo, he said. Bridge Director Luis Bazan showed Pharr’s plans for constructing more lanes and more inspection at the bridge, as trade continues to boom. Cruz assured the Pharr contingent that he’s a strong supporter of free trade and renegotiating NAFTA, which the Trump Administration officially began last week.
Cruz concluded his trip in Brownsville at Rich Products Corporation, a robust plant that processes domestic and imported shrimp and seafood. The senator slipped on a white robe and pulled on a hair net, as if he was walking in to perform surgery. The strong scent of garlic hung in the air as workers explained their operations.
But at that point, as Cruz was immersing himself on the tour, it was too late. He broke a cardinal rule.
“No funny hats,” Cruz said later. “And by definition, all hats are funny.”
It’s a tongue-in-cheek rule, Cruz said, but at times rules get broken as constituents show him around.
“That’s actually part of the way you make the job interesting,” Cruz said. “You listen to people and learn stuff. It becomes boring if you’re the only one talking. You know what you think.”
The visit to Rich Products Corporation was spawned by a letter Plant Manager Eddie De La Rosa sent to Cruz’s office in May. De La Rosa was concerned about the Seafood Import Monitoring Program, which would greatly harm the company. SIMP, which Cruz has supported, would likely cause major supply interruption and increase costs by restricting their options for sourcing.
Cruz strongly opposes regulations, and SIMP would increase regulations, which is why the company urged Cruz to reconsider his SIMP support. The senator said his main concern lies with shrimp exporters and importers engaging in illegal activity. He added that he wanted to ensure shrimp imports were safe for those involved.
“I don’t think there have been published cases of shrimp fraud that I’m aware of,” an employee told Cruz. “So I’d like to keep it out of this bureaucracy so we don’t have to pass the cost on to the consumer.”
One of Cruz’s aides connected with several of the employees at Rich Products. Those at the plant seemed encouraged by the dialogue with Cruz.
And with that, after tasting some fried shrimp, the senator finished trying to help the Valley for the day.
