Thread: House votes to end highway access for Mexican trucks

House votes to end highway access for Mexican trucks
By JIM ABRAMS Associated Press
Sept. 9, 2008, 6:26PM
33Comments WASHINGTON — Dismissing a White House veto threat, the House voted Tuesday to end a pilot program giving Mexican trucks access to U.S. highways.

The Bush administration stressed that the United States is obligated, under the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, to open up American roads to Mexican truckers, and that terminating the year-old demonstration project would have repercussions for American trucks allowed into Mexico. Passage of the House bill, it said "would pose significant and immediate risks to U.S. interests."

But the pilot project, which permits up to 500 trucks from 100 Mexican companies access to U.S. roads, is opposed by trucking, consumer and environmental groups who say it would eliminate American jobs and that Mexican trucks are subject to less stringent safety regulations. They say Mexico lacks adequate drug testing and hours-of service standards and that the program could contribute to smuggling or insurance fraud.

"I'm outraged that the Bush administration for political purposes would jeopardize the safety of the traveling public in the United States," said Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., chairman of the House Transportation subcommittee on highways.

The 395-18 House vote was well above the two-thirds needed to override a presidential veto. The bill would end the authority of the administration to go forward with the program without congressional approval. The Senate Appropriations Committee has attached similar language to a transportation spending bill, although that bill is unlikely to be enacted before President Bush leaves office.

Congress last December passed legislation banning funding to "establish" a program to allow U.S.-certified Mexican trucks to carry loads across the border, but the Transportation Department said that bill did not apply to a program that had already started. Several groups, including the Teamsters, Sierra Club and Public Citizen, have gone to federal court to challenge that interpretation.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, on the other hand, sent House members a letter urging opposition to the bill, saying the cross-border program "is a long overdue step toward reducing congestion and air pollution at the U.S.-Mexico border while promoting growth and jobs."

The administration last month said it intended to continue the pilot program for two more years.



http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5992420.html

Congress last December passed legislation banning funding to "establish" a program to allow U.S.-certified Mexican trucks to carry loads across the border, but the Transportation Department said that bill did not apply to a program that had already started.

Just shows how much this administration listens to the will of the American people. And for those 18 that voted against this measure, they should be thrown out of this country.

At least the names and states of the 18 should be posted....one is probably Harry Reid....he is so anti american on everything

The Senate Appropriations Committee has attached similar language to a transportation spending bill, although that bill is unlikely to be enacted before President Bush leaves office.

At least the House passed legislation. The Senate drags it's feet again.

"I'm outraged that the Bush administration for political purposes would jeopardize the safety of the traveling public in the United States," said Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., chairman of the House Transportation subcommittee on highways.

So glad Rep. DeFazio, D-Ore., shares the outrage of Americans and shares our concern for our safety on the highways of America!

Teamsters Praise House for Voting to Ban Unsafe Mexican Trucks


Last update: 7:19 p.m. EDT Sept. 9, 2008
WASHINGTON, Sept 09, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Members Vote Overwhelmingly To Stop Cross-Border Trucking Pilot Program
Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa commended the 395 members of Congress who voted today to close the border to dangerous trucks from Mexico.
The House of Representatives passed a bill to end the cross-border trucking program by a vote of 395 - 18. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., also prohibits the transportation secretary from granting authority to any Mexican trucks beyond the commercial zone, unless specifically authorized by Congress. The bill passed committee in July unanimously by a voice vote.
"This bill makes it very clear that Congress wants the border closed," Hoffa said. "This time, the Bush administration can't pretend it doesn't understand what Congress means."
Congress passed a law last year that cut off funds for opening the border. The Bush administration claimed the law was ambiguous and kept the border open. The Teamsters challenged the Bush administration in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco and is awaiting a decision.
"We know the Bush administration can't guarantee that trucks and drivers from Mexico are safe," Hoffa said. "We know there aren't any certified drug testing labs in Mexico. We know the database for Mexican driver traffic violations is inadequate. We know Mexico doesn't enforce hours-of-service violations."
Despite the bipartisan opposition to opening the border to dangerous trucks from Mexico, the Transportation Department said it will extend the program for another two years.
The Transportation Department has shown it is incapable of reviewing the safety records of Mexican carriers that want to participate in the pilot program. The agency approved Trinity Enterprises as a participant, though its own database indicated the company had more than 1,200 safety violations, or about 100 per truck.
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents more than 1.4 million hard-working men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.
SOURCE International Brotherhood of Teamsters

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Added to Home Page
http://www.alipac.us/article3535.html

Not sure how this one got missed.

Mexican trucks: Braking for sanity


Monday, September 15, 2008


The House wants to do what the Bush administration should have done long ago -- put the brakes on Mexican trucks freewheeling on American roads.

The 395-18 vote by lawmakers to end the cross-border trucking project -- more than enough to override a presidential veto -- makes a statement about the creeping Mexicanization of America. And given the lax enforcement of American immigration law (12 million to 20 million illegals in the U.S.), about President Bush's commitment to border integrity.

A pilot program permits up to 500 trucks from 100 Mexican companies access to U.S. roads. Critics contend Mexico lacks adequate driver drug testing, hours-of-service standards and that the program could contribute to smuggling or insurance fraud. And there remain serious questions about the safety of the Mexican trucks.

The Bush administration claims it will ensure that Mexican trucking will be subject to thorough scrutiny. But should the public believe Mr. Bush?

On Feb. 23, 2007, at a Mexican trucks news conference in El Paso, Texas, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said it was only a "yearlong demonstration program," a "pilot program," and a "test program."

Last month, the administration quietly said it would continue the "pilot" program for two more years.

Ending mission-creep? Mission accomplished.

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