Congressman Silvestre Reyes

Chairman, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

Field Hearing on “U.S.-Mexico Border Violence”

Opening Statement

March 30, 2009

EL PASO, TEXAS – House Permanent Select Committee Chairman, Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), today released the following opening statement at a field hearing of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations entitled “U.S.-Mexico Border Violence.”

As prepared for delivery:

“Thank you Mr. Chairman, it is a great honor to welcome you and the Members of this distinguished Committee to El Paso.

“I want to express my appreciation to Chairman Kerry for moving forward with this field hearing. There was a question of whether this hearing could proceed here in El Paso due to an initial scheduling conflict in the Senate, but Chairman Kerry felt it was critical to bring the Members of this Committee to the border region, and I appreciate his willingness to come to El Paso despite this scheduling challenge.

“I also want to thank UTEP President Dr. Diana Natalicio and her exceptional staff for all their help in hosting this event and making this hearing possible. This is a wonderful opportunity for the students of this great university to get a first-hand look at an official proceeding of the United States Congress.

“Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, the people of this community are neighbors to the brutal drug cartel violence that has claimed nearly 2,000 lives in Ciudad Juárez, a city that is only yards away from this institution. Our two cities make up one community – one with a common history and a shared destiny. The leaders of El Paso and Juárez have long known that we must work cooperatively if we are to realistically address the problems that impact the people on both sides of the border.

“Last week, I led a congressional delegation to meet with President Felipe Calderon. Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent me, as the House Intelligence Committee Chairman, along with House Armed Services Chairman Ike Skelton and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman, Chairman Kerry’s counterpart in the House of Representatives, to assess the effectiveness of the Merida Initiative and explore opportunities to further cooperation with Mexico. A delegation of three Committee Chairman is rare, and it underscores Speaker Pelosi’s commitment to assist the Mexican government in its effort to strengthen the rule of law and restore stability in Mexico.

“In a courageous effort to dismantle Mexico’s drug cartels, President Calderon has dispatched about 45,000 soldiers to date to conflict areas throughout the country and under his leadership Mexico is taking unprecedented steps to enhance its democratic institutions and to root-out corruption. President Calderon has committed over $6.4 billion in resources to combat Mexico’s drug cartels, and America must step up its efforts to help him and the people of Mexico in this fight.

“According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, Mexican and Columbian drug trafficking organizations bring in an estimated $8 – 25 billion in annual profits from the drug trade. Drug cartels can afford to purchase guns, armor, and other weaponry that rival those of the Mexican military.

“As the largest consumer of illicit drugs and the largest supplier of weapons to Mexico’s drug cartels, we must do more to address this very serious national security threat. Providing only $1.4 billion through the Merida Initiative for America’s third-largest trading partner and second-largest market for U.S. exports is simply not enough, particularly when considering our country has spent over $650 billion to date in Iraq.

“Over the course of the last few months, there has been a lot of media coverage about Mexico’s violence. Unfortunately, some have generalized the violence as occurring on the border, when in actuality the violence is occurring in Mexico. The problem is serious enough without being misrepresented by some in the media who sensationalize the situation. The vast majority of Mexico’s drug-related killings have been limited to cartel-on-cartel violence.

“It is important to make clear that the violence has not spilled over into our community, as many in the media would have you believe. For years El Paso has ranked among the safest cities in the entire country. The men and women of our local law enforcement have done an exceptional job of keeping our community safe. While nearly 2,000 people have been killed in drug-related violence in Juárez since January 2008, according to the El Paso Police Department, not a single homicide related to Mexico’s drug cartels has occurred in El Paso during this same time. For the last four years in a row, there have been less than 19 homicides annually and since 1995, there has never been more than one unsolved homicide in a given year.

“Furthermore, the El Paso Regional Economic Development Corporation (REDCo) has not seen a decline in investment from manufacturing and distribution companies in Juárez due to the violence. In fact, the organization is currently working with over 40 companies that are interested in expanding or relocating to Juárez, because the fundamentals which make it an attractive place in which to invest have not been eliminated by the violence. These factors include globally competitive operating costs, proximity to the US, and skilled labor.

“Our city’s low crime rate does not mean that the violence in Mexico has not impacted our community. Although we are among the safest cities in the U.S., we share an extensive border with the most violent city in all of North America. Many people who used to travel regularly to Juárez to visit loved ones, shop in a Juárez market, or dine at a restaurant are now simply too afraid to journey over the international bridges. Some victims of drug-related violence in Mexico have been transported to El Paso for emergency medical treatment. And with the large volume of drug-related cases in the border region, our local prosecutors assume many criminal cases for the federal government.

“It is imperative that we continue to adequately fund programs like the Southwest Border Prosecutors Initiative, Section 1011 of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, and Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) funding. All of these initiatives are necessary to help ease the burden that border communities shoulder.

“With over 26 years in the United States Border Patrol, I can tell you that the problems I dealt with as Chief are the same as today – we need more manpower, more resources, and better infrastructure to keep America’s border secure. The United States has not done enough to stop the flow of weapons and money smuggled from our country into Mexico. Our failure to cut these illicit exports is helping supply the drug cartels with the weapons and resources necessary to carry out their ruthless acts of violence.

“By manpower I do not mean U.S. soldiers or the National Guard. Our local and federal law enforcement officers are fully capable of keeping us safe. What we do need are more Customs and Border Protection (CBP) inspectors. For the past few years, the United States has increased the number of Border Patrol agents to patrol the space between our ports of entry. It is now time to increase the number of CBP inspectors to address the staffing needs at our ports of entry.

“We have inadequate staffing, facilities, and resources to effectively process the volume of traffic coming through the border and only minimal southbound inspection procedures to detect weapons and money that are illegally transported to Mexico. A comprehensive southbound strategy must be a part of our efforts to help Mexico reduce the violence.

“In closing, I believe that our commitment to Mexico and to ending this violence and bloodshed must continue by: passing an expanded Merida Initiative; strengthening efforts on the U.S. side to curtail the illegal transfer of weapons and money from the U.S. to Mexico; and increasing investment in the modernization and renovation of our land ports of entry.

“I would like to once again thank Chairman Kerry and the distinguished Members of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations for coming to El Paso to hear from the people who live in this community. The violence across the border merits increased cooperation and communication with Mexico. It also requires a firm commitment on our part to share the responsibility for this grave situation and to continue moving forward with strategic and comprehensive policies that aim to strengthen our bilateral relationship.”