NDN Blog

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up: Stories featured in the bulletin are below.

GOP Debate Features Brawl over Immigration and Health Care As the Republican primary in Florida draws nearer, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich continued to trade blows over whose stance on immigration was more extreme.

Romney assures Florida’s Hispanic voters the GOP isn’t ‘anti-immigrant’ as primary day nears Also at last nights debate, this dynamic was on display in a major way, when the two candidates where not fighting each other, they were trying desperately to mask the Republican parties recent anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Mitt Romney furious Newt Gingrich’s over ‘anti-immigrant’charge

;

Media Matters, the watchdog over all things media, released an interesting report on now the media covered the Keystone XL pipeline between August 1 and December 31. The report showed the media industry favored pipeline proponents. It is generally proven that the 20,000 jobs number is false and the project would create a few long-term employment opportunities, yet the pipeline was primarily portrayed as a jobs issue. Pro-pipeline voices were quoted more frequently than those opposed, and dubious industry estimates of job creation were uncritically repeated 5 times more often than they were questioned.  Among the broadcast networks, 79% of those quoted or interviewed were in favor of the pipeline. NBC and ABC did not quote anyone opposed.  On cable news 59% of those interviewed were propipeline and 16% were opposed to the pipeline.   Of those quoted by the major newspapers, 45% were in favor of the pipeline and 31% were opposed. The editorial boards of the Washington Post, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal have come out in favor of the Keystone XL pipeline. 

One of the year’s largest smart grid conferences, DistribuTECH, closes today in San Antonio, Texas. The event is relatively unknown in IT and web circles, but it’s like the CES for utilities, power companies and the vendors that are trying to sell them stuff.  Top ten identified trends were 1.  manage big data, 2.  become the internet of things 3.use of prepaid electricity 4. the smart thermostat  5.commercial deployment of energy storage batteries 6.a focus on software 7. Pivot/Flexibility 8.strong role for cellular 9.M&A still strong, 10. Go Big.

The 4th Quarter Report form AWEA has some good news -- U.S.-installed wind capacity grew by 6,810 megawatts in 2011, a 17 percent rise from the year before, according to the American Wind Energy Association's fourth-quarter report. But the good news may end there unless Congress acts soon, industry officials warn.

For the past few months I've been citing data showing that the national political landscape was changing, and a much more favorable 2012 environment was developing for the Democrats.  This week there was further confirmation of this trend in the newly released NBC/WSJ poll.  

From the poll:

- Right Track/Wrong Track is now 30/61, 26 points better than in October.

- Obama's approval is net positive, 48/46, for the first time since last summer. 

- Obama's handling of the economy is now 45/50, 13 points better than October.

But the really interesting data is the comparison of where the two parties and their candidates stand.  As the poll suggests the GOP is facing a significant structural challenge in 2012.

- Obama leads Romney 49/43, which is the same margin in his landslide win in 2008.  Against Gingrich and and Santorum Obama is way over 50, and ahead by more than 10 points. In a three way with Paul and Romney Obama wins 45/32/18.

- Dem Party favorability is 38/39, GOP 31/44.  This is a 15 point differential in basic favorability.

- Obama's favorability is 50/39, Romney 31/36, Gingrich 26/48, Santorum 26/27.  In the WaPo/ABC poll from earlier this week it was

- The Congressional generic is 47/41 for the Dems, a 4 point shift towards the Dems since December, and the best showing for the Dems in this poll since April of 2009. 

- Party ID is 44D/37R, a margin consistent with other data here.

- In the Republican Primary Gingrich leads Romney 37/28, and in a two way, 52/39.  Gingrich has significant challenges in the general election, but Mitt Romney is still after 5 years of running for President struggling to win over Republicans. 

In the article describing the poll, the authors refered to this batch of data as the "GOP Brand Problem." 

I have no doubt that is going to be a close election this fall.  But elections take on structures each year.  And while this has been a volatile period, there is a 2012 structure emerging, some basic set of realities which are settling in.  The structure of 2012 is much more favorable to the President, and the Democrats, than conventional wisdom holds. There is also very strong evidence that the nation is not blaming both parties equally for our challenges, an argument heard far too often in the mainstream media these days and one that is simply not backed up by data.

Your daily border bulletin is up! Stories featured in todays bulletin:

Romney, Gingrich fireworks over immigration: With the Republican primary in Florida this week the two leading GOP contenders traded blows over their stances on immigration. 

Mitt Romney’s immigration dilemma Politico weighs in on Romneys immigration problems.

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich at the Univision Forum Univision posts videos of Jorge Ramos interviewing both candidates.

Today NDN/NPI hosted a panel discussion on the current state of the economic relationship between the US and Mexico with Michael C. Camunez, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Market Access and Compliance, D. Rick Van Schoik, Director, North American Center for Transborder Studies and Simon Rosenberg, President,NDN and NPI. At the core of the discussion was the the findings of the NPI's major new report on cross border trade with Mexico.

For video from the event as well as a spreecast with the writers of the report please see below.

Event - Realizing the Value of our Cross Border Trade with Mexico Feat. Michael Camunez
Spreecast - Value of Cross Border Trade with Mexico.
Report - Realizing the Value  of our Cross Border Trade with Mexico

Rick Van Schoik noted that there has been great improvements between the Ports of Entry what must now occur is more staffing at the ports of entry to increase competitiveness domestically:

"Trade and tourism have suffered across the United States - Mexico Border as well as at the United States Canada border as most investment has been made BETWEEN ports of entry rather than AT the places where prosperity and productivity matters.  In terms of staffing, infrastructure, and technology, the rhetoric of safety has warped the reality, which is that the region is safe now lets find a way to invest in the gateways to North American competitiveness with each other and worldwide. DHS and the administration have led on this, now lets get the funding to make an even stronger economy domestically"

Assistant Secretary Camunez noted that with the complementary nature of our economies, most small businesses in this country only trade to one of two countries, Canada or Mexxico. If the United States is going to continue to grow its manufacturing base, our country will have to continue to increase its levels of trade with Mexico:

"We have a highly integrated economy with Mexico, with high level of co-production, with industry on both sides of the border. Our interest is to grow jobs, and to grow our manufacturing base as the President mentioned in his state of the union, then we have to make sure our manufacturers can compete.... "

A newly developed  compressed-air system devised by a Danielle Fong and her partners at LightSail Energy could fundamentally alter the way we generate and use energy by creating a clean, economic way to store electricity and return it to the power grid when it is most needed.   This is important if solar and wind power are ever to displace fossil fuels as a primary energy source. Compressed-air storage uses a motor to drive a piston to compress air in a tank. As the air compresses, it warms and converts mechanical energy into heat energy. To release that energy when needed, operators re-expand the air by heating it. The force of the expanding air drives a turbine or pistons to generate electricity.  LightSail will build a pilot project that’s expected to go online at a Texas wind farm next year.

Click here to down load the fact sheet released by the White House that neatly outlines the President's blueprint on energy issues which he addressed in his SOTU Tuesday evening.  President Obama will begin the second day of his post-State of the Union swing with an event at a UPS facility in Las Vegas, focusing on the importance of American workers developing American-made energy for an economy that's built to last. Following this event, the President will travel to Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora, Colorado to deliver remarks on American energy and the steps his Administration is taking to promote energy security.

Cleared by U.S. safety inspectors, GM-owned Chevrolet has a demonstration project that will allow electric vehicle drivers to charge up using renewable power.  Following the closure of a federal inquiry into possible fire hazards in the Volt, General Motors said that it was starting a trial with internet giant Google to test a new system that helps drivers charge when energy is at its 'greenest'.  The solution, powered by telematics system OnStar, uses a feed showing the percentage of renewable energy on the electricity grid, and therefore when the electricity that comes out of the socket is likely to be the least polluting.  Equipped with this information, General Motors says that OnStar can simultaneously manage the charging of many Volt vehicles (enabling a whole fleet, like Google's, to recharge cleanly), or could alert customers to begin charging.

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up! Stories featured in this weeks bulletin:

Obama draws contrast with GOP on immigration President Barack Obama’s State of The Union address helped draw a sharp contrast between his administration and the Republican parties current immigration stances.

Gingrich mocks Romney’s ‘self-deportation’ plan While campaigning in Florida Republican Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich mocked Mitt Romney over his plan to require undocumented immigrants to “self deport.”

Mitt Romney Responds to Newt Gingrich Immigration Attacks Mitt Romney, also campaigning in Florida took the opportunity to attack Gingrich for engaging in divisive politics.

Tomorrow be sure to join us for a discussion about the current state of the economic relationship between the US and Mexico.  Joining us for lunch will be a terrific panel:

Michael C. Camunez, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Market Access and Compliance,
D. Rick Van Schoik, Director, North American Center for Transborder Studies and
Simon Rosenberg, President,NDN and NPI

At the core of the discussion will be the findings of the New Policy Institute's major new report, Realizing the Value  of our Cross Border Trade with Mexico.  Lunch will be served at noon, and the program will begin at 12:15pm.  It will all take place the NDN/NPI offices, 729 15th, NW, in our first floor event space.  To reserve your slot please RSVP today. Below are some helpful data points to peruse ahead of the event.

In his State of the Union Address, President Obama laid out a blueprint for an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, and skills for American workers.

NDN applauds the economic vision presented in President Obama’s State of the Union speech.

We are especially pleased in light of the ground breaking economic research we are undertaking with our Next Economy Partnership Project. 

Based on our research, we believe President Obama’s perspective represents what the public wants - optimizing entrepreneurship to create jobs.

One of the most critical elements of the President's proposal is investing in America's most important resource: our workforce.

To maximize the Next Economy, we need to invest in education and workforce training so there are smart, trained workers to fill the new 21st century jobs.

Building the next economy - an economy built on the jobs of the future, like advanced manufacturing and clean energy - is tremendously important for the future of the middle class.

Tomorrow be sure to join us for a discussion about the current state of the economic relationship between the US and Mexico.  Joining us for lunch will be a terrific panel:

Michael C. Camunez, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Market Access and Compliance,
D. Rick Van Schoik, Director, North American Center for Transborder Studies and
Simon Rosenberg, President,NDN and NPI

At the core of the discussion will be the findings of the New Policy Institute's major new report, Realizing the Value  of our Cross Border Trade with Mexico.  Lunch will be served at noon, and the program will begin at 12:15pm.  It will all take place the NDN/NPI offices, 729 15th, NW, in our first floor event space.  To reserve your slot please RSVP today. Below are some helpful data points to peruse ahead of the event.

U.S.-Mexico Border Management: Building the Infrastructure for Future Competitiveness

Sharing a 2,000-mile long border with Mexico needs to be recognized as both a challenge and an opportunity. Though improving, our border’s current infrastructure and capacity today reflect the needs of a bygone era. While land ports of entry between the two nations were first envisioned to process the legitimate crossing of people, goods and services across the border, security has taking an overwhelmingly dominant role in recent years, hampering the ability of agencies to efficiently manage border traffic.

With this in mind, in May of 2010 the U.S. and Mexico signed the 21st Century Border Management Joint Declaration. Recognizing the importance of fostering the commercial relationship, both countries have agreed to coordinate efforts to enhance economic competitiveness by expediting lawful trade. The basic idea is that developing a modern and secure border infrastructure will give an added boost to our region’s safety and competitiveness in the world.

The Presidents National Export Initiative and Mexico

The NEI is the Obama Administration’s commitment to serve as a full partner with U.S. businesses to promote American-made goods and services worldwide, within global trading rules.  The NEI is focused on (1) improving trade advocacy and export promotion efforts; (2) increasing access to credit, especially for small and medium-sized businesses; (3) removing barriers to the sale of U.S. goods and services abroad; (4) robustly enforcing trade rules; and (5) pursuing policies at the global level to promote strong, sustainable, and balanced growth.   

In a past speech Assistant Secretary Camunez recognized the importance of the 21st Century Border Management initiative.  The system has three areas of focus that are overseen by a bi-national Executive Steering Committee (ESC), of which my office in the Department of Commerce is a part, and three working groups Brder Infrastructure, secure Flows of Goods and People; and corridor Security.

Recognizing that border trade facilitation has been studied to date, and what’s needed is action, the ESC developed a 12-month action plan for the border region, which seeks to enhance economic competitiveness by supporting a bilateral border master plan process for infrastructure projects in order to increase capacity; expand trusted traveler and shipper programs; and explore opportunities for pre-clearance, pre-inspection, and pre-screening processes for commercial goods and travelers.

Trade with Mexico: An Abundance of Value That Is “Hidden In Plain Sight”

• Given the complementarity of the U.S. and Mexican economies, bilateral trade has grown exponentially between Mexico and the United States, reaching a record high of nearly $400 billion in 2010.
• Mexico is now the third-ranked commercial partner of the U.S. and the second largest market for U.S. exports.
• American consumers and businesses import large quantities of jointly produced products and services from Mexico such as automobiles, produce, and petroleum, just to name a few. Still, for every dollar Mexico makes from exporting to the U.S., it will in turn spend 50 cents on U.S. products or services, which are a considerable benefit to our economy and demonstrates the truly unique quality of this trade or “joint production” relationship.

We hope you will join us next week for what will be a terrific discussion.  Lunch will be served at noon, and the program will begin at 12:15pm.  It will all take place at the NDN/NPI offices, 729 15th, NW, in our first floor event space.  To reserve your slot please RSVP today. If you would like to view the event over the web, please do so by going to the NDN/NPI channel at 12:15 tomorrow on the web-casting platform Spreecast. And feel free to send this invitation to others you think may be interested in joining us. 

Yesterday, President Barack Obama gave his State of the Union Address, in it he briefly touched on immigration and the border, in doing so he touched an important point: as our immigration debate enters a new phase our understanding of the Southwest Border, what the region means for legal immigration and what it represents for our country as a whole, is changing. Taking these changes into consideration Congress must move beyond debates on security to a more elevated discussion on how best to reform our immigration laws.

The Presidents comments on immigration framed the conversation around the changing dynamic of the southwest border region. “I believe as strongly as ever that we should take on illegal immigration. That’s why my Administration has put more boots on the border than ever before.  That’s why there are fewer illegal crossings than when I took office.  The opponents of action are out of excuses.  We should be working on comprehensive immigration reform right now.”

The administration has sent unparalleled resources to the Border and these resources are showing results. In his speech he noted that there are fewer undocumented immigrants entering the country through our southwest border, however this is only part of the story.

Nogales, Arizona Mayor Arturo Garino said of the speech: “The President has done a great job on the border. What he said last night is absolutely true. In fact Nogales is getting 40 new CBP personnel for the Ports of Entry, and we currently have 90 in training for the area, all of this will facilitate legal commerce and trade which will only help our local economy.  The same facilitation of legal traffic from Mexico, anywhere from 60 – 80 thousand people daily not only boosts nogales economy but the states as whole. By the time the Mariposa port of entry is online, we will have enough personnel to fully staff it which will double commerce in manufacturing and produce for region.”

Mayor Garino’s comments contextualize the current discussion over the border region and immigration: legal trade and legal immigration are important to both the southwest border region and our country as a whole.  Any reasonable look at the data from the past several years makes clear that the new joint Mexican-US strategy towards the common border region is working.  Deportations of criminal immigrants, southbound seizures of bulk cash and illegal guns are way up.  The number of illegal migrants crossing the border, the number of undocumented immigrants in the US, crime rates all along the US side of the border are all down.

At the border the Department of Homeland Security has increased: "the number of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Border Patrol agents nationwide from approximately 10,000 in 2004 to more than 21,000 today with nearly 18,500 “boots on the ground” along the Southwest border. Additionally they have deployed a quarter of all U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operational personnel to the Southwest border region—the most ever—to dismantle criminal organizations along the border."

This has produced results. A recent New York Time’s article says it all, undocumented migration in the United States is at all time lows. In fact according to the Princeton Mexican Migration institute, migration from Mexico is at net zero, which means that the number of migrants entering the country equals the number entering. Finally The Council on Foreign relations recently noted that if these trends continue the United States may find  that overall undocumented migration from Latin America could also reach net zero This is the first time in nearly twenty years this has occurred.

Yet this is only half the story along the southwest border, as Mayor Garino pointed out legal commerce and legal migration has only increased over the last four years. The New Policy Institutes recent paper on trade between our two countries shows: Mexico has spent $163 billion on U.S. goods in 2010. Further more U.S. sales to Mexico are larger than all U.S. exports to the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) combined, as well as all combined sales to Great Britain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands.

All of this is important for our country as a whole. Twenty-two states count Mexico as their No. 1 or No. 2 export market: Mexico is the largest export market to the two largest economies in the country in Texas and California. Other states that count Mexico as their largest export market are Arizona, New Mexico, and New Hampshire.  It is the second largest export market for states such as Colorado, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan and Tennessee.

One of the first steps in moving past our current impasse on immigration reform, is to accept that  some of the problems facing our immigration system have very little to do with the border and everything to do with a lack of understanding of the positive things occurring there.