{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://hurd.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/trade-mexico-matters-here-s-why", "Trade with Mexico Matters. Heres Why", "2016-12-15", "2016", "2016-12", "Republican", "House", "TX", "Will Hurd", "H001073", "hurd.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Miguel Perez is feeling anxious. As the owner of a leasing company operating along the U.S.-Mexico border, Perez is keenly aware that trade and Mexico emerged among this year\u2019s boogeymen, with President-elect Donald Trump at times sounding highly critical of both. But now that the contentious election is over, Perez hopes the president-elect and those closest to him will understand what Americans living along the border have known for generations: trading with our neighbor to the south is a good thing.\nThe good news for Perez is that many in Congress agree.\nAmong those include a bipartisan group of senators and congressman that fought hard to send to the president\u2019s desk a bill that would significantly ease border trading by reducing commercial wait times. First term\u00a0Rep. Will Hurd\u00a0(R-Texas) was among those leading the fight, working alongside Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), to make permanent a series of successful public-private partnerships that have sprung up along the southern border for some time now.\nHad Congress fully funded the agencies with jurisdiction over border and trade in recent years, the public-private partnerships may never have happened. And as a result, the outcome of the legislation may prove a useful template for other public-private partnerships down the lines especially in transportation, infrastructure and trade.\nThe details of the bill are mundane and full of Washington-speak, but vital for the local communities it impacts most. When signed by President Obama, the bill would give the U.S. Custom and Border Protection (CBP) the ability to provide custom agricultural and inspection-related services for a fee while sharing construction and maintenance fees with another government agency. The bill would also allow the CBP to accept donations from individuals in the form of money, facility construction and maintenance, as well as infrastructure investments.\nThis form of innovative thinking makes a lot of sense to international trade attorney\u00a0Scott Lincicome, who considers custom and border disputes a type of trade barrier. \u201cTrade facilitation initiatives like this are important,\u201d Lincicome told\u00a0Opportunity Lives. \u201cI like that these initiatives appear to be privately financed through user fees or donations.\u201d\nFor Perez, whose livelihood depends on smooth border crossings to transport machinery and heavy equipment, paying user fees is all part of running a successful business. \u201cI will be able to move more equipment by making border crossings less burdensome,\u201d Perez said.\nAnd with an estimated $52 billion in annual trade and services crossing the border each way with Mexico, according to\u00a0Office of the United States Trade Representative\u00a0(USTR), making it easier for Miguel Perez to conduct business would seem to most as common sense. But of course in this year of upside down politics, nothing is a given.\nThe president-elect has made a number of eyebrow-raising comments, including at times calling for the United States to\u00a0withdraw from NAFTA, a landmark trade agreement with Mexico and Canada. Trump has also said he wants to \u201cpunish\u201d companies for shipping jobs overseas. And while this may not directly impact businesses like Perez\u2019s, this doesn\u2019t mean that Trump\u2019s tough talk won\u2019t leave a more searing impression on the minds of Americans that trading is a net drain on our economy.\nPerez understands why protectionism plays well in certain parts of the country. But as he sees it, \u201cglobalization is a force that the U.S. cannot stop.\u201d Better to embrace the market forces and avoid risking a trade war. \u201cChina can play hardball too,\u201d said Perez.\nAnd for now at least it seems that Perez will have a sympathetic ear in Congress. In addition to the efforts of Reps. Hurd and Cueller, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) also played an important role in ensuring that the bill was included in the last-minute deal making that took place in the waning days of the current Congress.\nIf trade protectionism emerges as an important priority in the Trump administration, don\u2019t expect the Republican Congress to roll over if the president wants to rip up NAFTA, start a trade war or get in the way of public-private partnerships along the U.S.-Mexico border that benefit the whole economy.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://hurd.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/trade-mexico-matters-here-s-why"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.496301032602787, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}