San Diego Metropolitan - The Connection

Jan. 1, 1989, marked the start of the U.S./Canada Free Trade Agreement. Soon after, Mexican President Salinas de Gortari approached President Bush, the elder, with the idea of a U.S.-Mexico free trade agreement. When the request was made public, Canada asked to be included. Thus was born the idea of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Little public debate about the environmental shortcomings of either country was aired as part of the U.S./Canada negotiations. No mention was made of the disastrous toxic contamination taking place in the Great Lakes shared by both countries, nor of the rapid depletion of forests.

But the introduction of Mexico into the equation brought about a resounding debate about Mexico’s environmental shortcomings that threatened approval of the agreement.

U.S. labor unions were very opposed to a free trade agreement that included Mexico. Their stated reasons were that “jobs would be sucked south,” a mantra also picked up by Ross Perot and Pat Buchanan, both seeking residence at the White House at the time.

What is less known is that officials from the AFL-CIO/ Teamsters unions visited Mexican labor officials from the Confederación de Trabajadores Mexicanos, a giant labor union, and other unions of importance. They carried the message that the unions should join or act together for the benefit of North American workers.

At the time, union officials in the United States may not have understood that the CTM and other Mexican unions were political arms of the PRI, the party in power. Their primary job was to follow PRI dictates; workers’ needs and concerns were a distant secondary obligation. Their obvious answer to a request for cooperation was a polite “no.” Returning slighted, the unions set about to defeat the agreement.

However, to the surprise of U.S. unions, then-Rep. Esteban Torres (D), a staunch union protégé and long time labor activist, proved to be the deal broker. The Los Angeles congressman proposed two items that, if approved, would swing the necessary congressional votes needed for approval:

Creation of a retraining fund for U.S. workers displaced by the existence of the trade agreement.
Creation of both the North American Development Bank to fund projects improving the environment along the U.S./Mexico border and the Border Environment Cooperation Commission.

Both ideas were incorporated into the draft agreement, Torres swung the necessary votes for approval and NAFTA was born.

In Texas, which shares the United States’ longest border with Mexico, approval by its congressional delegation of NAFTA, particularly those along the border, was strong.

Contrast that with San Diego, home of the world’s busiest border crossing, where only two of the five-member congressional delegation voted in favor.

A price was paid because of San Diego’s weak support. When the border development bank and environmental commission were created, they were headquartered in San Antonio, about 150 miles from the border and well beyond the 62 miles defined as the Border Region by the NADBank mandate.

To date, the bank has allocated nearly $1.37 billion for projects along the border, with less than 10 percent (about $120 million) going for California/Baja California projects.

Yet San Diego has a history of leading a charmed life and it may be again experiencing one of those moments.

Last month, the South County Economic Development Council, of which I am a member, held its 12th annual economic summit, “Financing Border Development.” The keynote speaker was Raul Rodriguez, chief executive and managing director of NADBank.

The point man for Rodriguez, Juan Antonio Flores, arrived the day before the event. He was briefed and escorted on a tour of the border region by Doug Perkins’ staff at Pacific Gateway Group, a leading local U.S./Mexico consulting agency. Flores, accompanied by South County EDC board members, also attended a Tijuana EDC hosted by Sempra Energy.

Out of those meetings has come the idea that NADBank should have a San Diego presence for at least three months of the year. During those times, projects of importance and in need of financing along the California/ Baja border would be discussed. Flores has said he will take the matter to Rodriguez.

The South County EDC also has proposed an April 2003 conference in San Diego between NADBank and regional planners. Also garnering local interest is NADBank’s ability to provide grants for training personnel in project and environmental information gathering, application preparation and filing requirements for funding. Conference organizing starts this month.

The window of opportunity again has been opened. Those who have ideas on how we can blow this one too, please, keep them to yourself.

Patrick Osio Jr. can be reached through San Diego Metropolitan or by e-mail at posiojr@aol.com.