Do something about Mexican trucks

Ok.....Who benefits from NAFTA and X-border trucks?


Will it benefit the US carriers and drivers?

Will it raise the standard of living for the Mexican driver?

 

For starters, it would benefit the US government, considering they woulnt need to spend millions a year on border patrol. The same can be said for Mexico's government.

As far as the truck driving aspect goes, it would be no different than Canada. If you dont want to lose the freight, then you would need a passport. It wouldnt hurt to learn some spanish either. I can see why a owner operator wouldnt like a open border, but to prevail in the industry you need to be willing to make compromises.

Sure, I can come up with a reason not to drive to Mexico, but I can also come up with reasons to not drive to Florida, New England, Wyoming, etc.

 

Just how does X-border trucking end the illegal immigration issue?

Uh...NAFTA is about movement of goods between countries...Not a mass exodus of people....

 

Huh? Which planet are you living on? 'Cause it ain't this one.

There is a drug-war going on down there that is about one step short of a civil war. And it's spilling over onto our side of the border. Drug violence is endemic with massive quantites of drugs being shipped north, money and weapons south. Not to mention the flow of illegal immigrants north. US citizens have been caught up in this and murdered on both sides of the border by the Mexican cartels - and corrupt Mexican Army units have crossed the border aiding that drug traffic. Opening the border to unrestricted surface commerce will become a conduit for illegal activity.

Opening the border to unrestricted truck traffic will require a massive investment in security to inspect those loads just to interdict the illegal traffic - that's money this country doesn't have, and if any indications are to be trusted, won't be appropriated by this Congress in any case. The Border Patrol has yet to be able to inspect all container traffic coming into this country as it is - as mandated after 9-11, let alone having the resources to deal with the demands of unrestricted truck traffic.

OTOH, by all accounts, Mexico is a fairly lawless country - outside of the major cities. American truckers will be faced with the threat of armed hijackings, and having to deal corrupt law enforcement officials.

On this side of the border, don't even begin to suggest that those Mexican trucking operations that venture up here won't be engaged in cabotage... just like Canadian trucking companies are in this country - and for that matter US trucking companies are in Canada.

None of this is to suggest that there will be enough Mexican trucks to matter at first - but it is the nose of the camel underneath the tent. Once those concerns have established their ability to operate in this country, the US DOT intends to grant them unrestricted authority to operate in this country in perpetuity - and that will change things. Care to compete against someone making 10-cpm?

 

You arent immune to a hijacking, corrupt smokeys, etc in the US.

Yes, I am fully aware of the drug wars. I was born at night, but not last night. We created the drug wars, not Mexico.