[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 202 (Tuesday, December 12, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H9824-H9826]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REAFFIRMING A STRONG COMMITMENT TO THE UNITED STATES-MEXICO PARTNERSHIP
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
agree to the resolution (H. Res. 336) reaffirming a strong commitment
to the United States-Mexico partnership.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 336
Whereas shared cultural ties, values, and beliefs connect
the citizens of the United States and Mexico and have long
been the foundation from which the friendly, bilateral
relationship has flourished;
Whereas the United States and Mexico have benefited from a
bilateral, mutually beneficial partnership focused on
advancing the economic and security interests of both
countries;
Whereas it is in the national interests of the United
States and Mexico to continue deepening economic cooperation
and security cooperation;
Whereas consecutive United States and Mexican
administrations have increased bilateral defense and law
enforcement cooperation on counterterrorism and
counternarcotics issues, including the illicit trafficking of
weapons, money, people, and drugs across the United States
southern border;
Whereas cooperation with Mexico during the administration
of President Pena Nieto has led to the extradition of more
than 270 individuals facing criminal charges in the United
States;
Whereas, the January 19, 2017, extradition of drug kingpin
Joaquin ``El Chapo'' Guzman to New York was a major victory
for both countries that would not have been possible without
a robust United States-Mexico security partnership;
Whereas the Merida Initiative was established in 2007 and
enabled a new level of security cooperation between the
United States and Mexico on a range of issues including
efforts to combat transnational organized crime and promote
justice reform;
Whereas the United States and Mexico have begun cooperation
to address the trafficking and production of heroin and
fentanyl threatening the lives of citizens in both countries;
Whereas the United States has provided almost $2.8 billion
in security assistance to Mexico through the Merida
Initiative between fiscal year 2008 and fiscal year 2017;
Whereas the United States and Mexico enjoy close diplomatic
cooperation and Mexico has consistently voted with the United
States at the United Nations on challenges related to Syria,
North Korea, and Ukraine;
Whereas the United States and Mexico have closely
collaborated at the Organization of American States (OAS) on
issues related to Venezuela, where Mexico has played a
leading role;
Whereas Mexico is an important security and defense partner
to the United States, and regularly participates in training
activities in coordination with United States Northern
Command (NORTHCOM) and the North American Aerospace Defense
Command (NORAD); and
Whereas the United States and Mexico launched the High
Level Economic Dialogue on September 20, 2013, to help
advance United States-Mexico economic and commercial
priorities to promote mutual economic growth, job creation,
educational exchanges and innovation, and global
competitiveness: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) reaffirms its strong commitment to a United States-
Mexico partnership based on mutual respect and the promotion
of shared democratic values and principles;
(2) supports continued bilateral cooperation through the
High Level Economic Dialogue on issues related to the
economic well-being and security of both countries;
(3) encourages continued security cooperation between the
United States and Mexican law enforcement agencies and
militaries, including on violence reduction in Mexico,
counterterrorism and the increased trafficking of heroin and
fentanyl;
(4) supports continued engagement with Mexico to tackle
regional issues and work together in international fora,
including the United Nations and the Organization of American
States; and
(5) supports efforts by the Government of Mexico to
strengthen the rule of law, reduce corruption, and advance
civil and human rights.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their
remarks and to include any extraneous material in the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs
Committee, Mr. Engel. This is his bill. Let me also say that the
chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, Mike McCaul, who was his
primary cosponsor for this, has worked hard on this resolution. It
represents a broad, bipartisan acknowledgment of the importance of the
relationship between the United States of America and the country of
Mexico.
The United States and Mexico share strong ties. Passage of this
resolution will signal this body's commitment to strengthening our
bilateral relationship with Mexico, a relationship that impacts
Americans on a daily basis.
[[Page H9825]]
Today, the United States is grappling with challenges, just as Mexico
is grappling with some challenges. We have a deadly drug crisis where
more than 1,000 people a week die from opioid-related overdoses. This
is a crisis that started with overprescribed pain medication here in
the United States but is now fueled by heroin and fentanyl supplied by
drug cartels.
We have got to strengthen our partnership with Mexico and continue
working with Mexican security forces to stem the tide of these illegal
drugs entering into our communities and to harden our shared border
against terrorism and criminality.
This resolution also affirms the strong commercial relationship
between our two countries. Mexico was the second largest export market
for U.S. goods last year. It affirms our long history of cooperation on
environmental and natural resource issues.
For example, this past September, our two countries signed an
agreement to improve reservoir levels in Lake Mead and in the Colorado
River Basin that will help prevent water shortages currently affecting
Americans in the Southwest United States.
{time} 1545
There are, of course, areas that I think we can improve the U.S.-
Mexico relationship. Mexico needs to do more to combat the corruption
that has taken its toll on its citizens' trust.
But this resolution comes at an important time in the U.S. with our
relationship with Mexico and should signal to the people of Mexico that
the people of the United States want to continue to work with Mexico on
matters of mutual concern, from security to combating the illegal drug
trade, to strengthening our respective economies.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this measure.
Mr. Speaker, I thank our chairman, Ed Royce, for working with me to
bring this measure to the floor, and I thank Congressman McCaul, the
lead Republican sponsor of this resolution, as well. I am pleased to be
the lead sponsor on this resolution.
After more than a decade of good progress in the U.S.-Mexico
partnership, this year we have seen some things change course in a
troubling way. It is a problem, and it needs to be stopped. That is why
I offer this measure reaffirming our strong commitment to our
relationship with Mexico. We don't want anyone there to have any kinds
of questions. We believe in a strong U.S.-Mexico relationship.
Mr. Speaker, I also thank our ranking member on the Western
Hemisphere Subcommittee, Mr. Sires, and Mr. Castro for their efforts on
this resolution and their support day in and day out for a robust U.S.-
Mexico partnership.
Mr. Speaker, it is hard to overstate how important the U.S.-Mexico
relationship is and the tremendous impact it has on Americans every
single day. Mexico is a friend and ally. Mexico is our third largest
trading partner. It is a country with which we share deep person-to-
person, family, and cultural ties, and it is a country where we have
painstakingly cultivated a vibrant, critical relationship between our
two countries.
Over the past century, there have been many highs and lows in the
U.S.-Mexico relationship. Unfortunately, sometimes, recently, we have
had a lot of lows with talk about building walls and other derogatory
talk about Mexicans. We don't want that to continue. We want to
establish and reaffirm the strong U.S.-Mexico relationship.
In 2007, I became chairman of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee of
the House Foreign Affairs Committee. That was the same day that the
Merida Initiative was announced by Presidents Bush and Calderon, which
led to a new level of security cooperation between the United States
and Mexico.
That effort wasn't perfect then and it isn't today. The civilian toll
of Mexico's drug war is still far too high, and human rights violations
at the federal, state, and local level in Mexico remain a serious
problem. But what we gained from the Merida Initiative was an entirely
new way of collaborating with the Mexican Government on a wide range of
security issues.
Presidents Obama and Pena Nieto built on Merida's foundation, and one
of the results was a remarkable achievement in the last hours of the
Obama administration, which was the extradition of drug kingpin ``El
Chapo'' Guzman to my hometown of New York City to stand trial. Without
a strong U.S.-Mexico partnership, that would not have been possible. A
decade ago, it probably would not have happened at all.
And while we absolutely don't need to waste billions of taxpayer
dollars on a 2,000-mile-long wall against our southern border, what we
do need is to maintain our partnership on security matters with the
Mexican Government.
We want the Mexican Government to continue to reach out to us with
information regarding suspected terrorists. We want to say that the
Mexican Government will cooperate with us and extradite the next drug
kingpin to the United States, and it goes on and on. So we cannot
overemphasize just how important the U.S.-Mexico partnership is and how
it keeps Americans safe on a day-to-day basis.
H. Res. 336 underscores the importance of a U.S.-Mexico relationship
built on mutual respect. Mutual respect means building bridges, not
walls, between our two countries; it means recognizing the vast
contributions of Mexican Americans to our country and not classifying
an entire population as drug dealers and rapists; it means not singling
out an esteemed judge based solely on his race.
Congress has an important opportunity today to be the adult in the
room and let the Mexican Government and the Mexican people know that
our relationship with them is very, very important and will continue to
be important. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this
measure. I am pleased that we have support for this on both sides of
the aisle.
I thank Chairman Royce, as always, for his cooperation and his
partnership, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
California (Mrs. Torres), my good friend and colleague on the Foreign
Affairs Committee, and a very valued member of the Foreign Affairs
Committee.
Mrs. TORRES. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 336,
which reaffirms our strong commitment to the United States-Mexico
partnership.
Mexico is our neighbor and one of our most important strategic
allies. Under NAFTA and the Merida Initiative, our countries have
expanded our economic and security cooperation in ways that involve
almost every aspect of our lives. Our work with Mexico goes beyond the
Federal Government. It is in our State and local governments. It is in
our businesses and in our churches.
H. Res. 336 holds up the idea that working with Mexico has been good
for our security and our economy. No one is saying that our
relationship is perfect. We still have real security problems to
address, especially the smuggling of guns, drugs, and money across our
borders, and we need to do more--a lot more--to lift up those
communities that have not benefited from NAFTA; but, on the whole, we
are better off when we work together.
Working together is what makes it possible to have those tough
conversations about those issues where we disagree, so we shouldn't
even need to pass a resolution like this. It should be assumed. It
should be common sense. But the rhetoric across this administration has
made it necessary for Congress to speak out in defense of our neighbor
and our ally, and we are here today speaking out.
I thank Representative Engel and Representative McCaul for their
leadership, and I thank Chairman Royce for his ongoing work in bringing
this resolution forward and ongoing work in the committee to ensure
that we work on a bipartisan level.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, let me close on a positive note. I believe that it is
not too
[[Page H9826]]
late to reverse course on this latest direction of U.S.-Mexico ties. At
a difficult moment in our bilateral relationship, I am heartened to
stand here on the House floor and listen to my colleagues on both sides
of the aisle offer such robust support for the U.S.-Mexico
relationship.
I again thank Chairman Royce and Mr. McCaul for their help and
support of this resolution. What we need is to maintain and even
strengthen our cooperation on security and economic matters with the
Mexican Government. Passage of H. Res. 336 today is an excellent step.
Congress really needs to lead the way.
So I thank, again, my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for
supporting this resolution, and I pledge to do everything I can to
continue to enhance the very important U.S.-Mexico relationship.
I think it is important to state that this relationship is not only
important to Mexico, but it is important to the United States for so
many different reasons. That is why I think it is important for
Congress to reaffirm its support, strong support, for the U.S.-Mexico
relationship.
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for
supporting this resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, again, I thank the author, the
ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. Engel, and I thank
Congresswoman Norma Torres, as well, and the chairman of the Homeland
Security Committee, Mike McCaul, for their work on this important
resolution recognizing the U.S.-Mexico partnership and recognizing our
important economic relationship. As our countries continue to work
together, this resolution signals our commitment to strengthen our ties
with our Mexican neighbors.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this
resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 336.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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