Thread: Teamsters Chief Protests U.S.-Mexico Cargo Program

Teamsters Chief Protests U.S.-Mexico Cargo Program

Dec 05, 2007
Andrew Phelps

The International Teamsters Union chief was at the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego today, protesting a program that lets some Mexican trucks haul cargo anywhere in the United States. KPBS reporter Andrew Phelps has details.

Dozens of San Diego truckers gathered at the Otay Mesa border crossing, a major port of entry for cargo. A pilot program lets about 50 Mexican trucks cross the border and travel freely in the United States. That's if those trucks meet strict standards.

But Teamsters President Jim Hoffa says Mexican trucks are still unsafe, and their drivers could pose a risk.

Hoffa: They don't have a database in which people can be held accountable if they get a drunk driving or have any type of record. They're also basically a national security risk from the standpoint of we don't know they are, what they are.

U.S. Department of Transportation officials say Mexican drivers get drug tests and background checks. Officials say the Mexican truckers face tougher standards than their American counterparts.

http://www.kpbs.org/news/local;id=10388

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Originally Posted by Hoffa

: They don't have a database in which people can be held accountable if they get a drunk driving or have any type of record. They're also basically a national security risk from the standpoint of we don't know they are, what they are.

But it's ok if their already here, just legalize them and give them a union card you scab lover.

BS

I wonder how many illegals and drugs have already been hauled in, in the back of those trucks....I'm sure it was enough to make up for what Chertoff has been deporting.

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More Business news
Teamsters boss leads border rally


Hoffa challenges trucking program
By David Washburn
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

December 6, 2007



EDUARDO CONTRERAS / Union-Tribune
Teamsters union members rallied yesterday with Jim Hoffa at Otay Mesa.
Saying he was fighting for the safety of America's roads, Teamsters union General President Jim Hoffa led a rally yesterday morning at the Otay Mesa border crossing to protest a pilot program that allows long-haul trucking across the U.S.-Mexico border.
“The big-money boys want to have trucks coming through here that are dangerous,â€