For some time now I have been developing the thesis that in El Paso there is a protected class of citizen. It is class that can literally commit a crime in plain daylight and not worry about being arrested, much less prosecuted. I also, recently, and for the first time, revealed to you my feeling that El Paso was one of the most unfriendly cities for immigrants. That post elicited some comments about how wrong I was, but so do many others, so I’m not really surprised. As I have written before, it is my intent that my blog serves as an archive of the various pieces that over time prove me correct. I have also postured that El Paso serves as a laboratory to a much bigger national problem. They are examples of a protected class and unfriendly immigrant cities that abound nationally.
Events this last week allows me to add more evidence for these two topics.
Let’s look at the protected class of citizen first.
As you likely know by now, Jaime Esparza, the local district attorney, declined to prosecute Rut Lilly, Ann Morgan Lilly’s husband for allegedly assaulting Oscar Leeser’s wife during a recent altercation at a local restaurant. Never mind that Esparza has a history of never prosecuting politicians that belong to a certain faction of the political spectrum. Never mind that Jaime Esparza has a documented history of prosecuting politicians from other factions only for the conviction to be reversed by a higher court.
It doesn’t matter because although the police may put together a case with witnesses, surveillance video and credible victims, there is never enough evidence to prosecute the protected class. On the other hand, if a politico is recorded promising to give certain favors that a higher court rules is perfectly legal, the politico will nonetheless be prosecuted by Espraza because the politico does not belong to the protected class.
Clearly there is a protected class in El Paso and if Esparza deems you worthy, in the infamous words of Donald Trump, you can go out to the middle of “5th Avenue and shoot somebody” and not lose votes nor be arrested for it.
So now you understand why Rut Lilly isn’t being prosecuted.
That brings us back to how unfriendly El Paso is to immigrants. Look at the Lilly’s, and the other protected class citizens in El Paso and I’m sure you’ll see the same common denominator that is obvious to me.
One would expect that El Paso, being right on the US-Mexico border with its politicos routinely gushing about diversity and how welcoming the city is to everyone, that immigrants would be protected. Not so.
It was my experience, while I live in El Paso, that immigrants were only a source of money for the city and an excuse for the higher taxes. The El Paso politicos will tell you they are open to immigrants but act in the opposite way.
Case in point is El Paso’s Sheriff, Richard Wiles.
Richard Wiles announced this week that he signed the Texas governor’s letter honoring the requests to detain suspected undocumented immigrants at the county jail. Wiles told you it was about money.
He is exactly correct – immigrant bashing is about money. Immigrants, especially in El Paso are fodder for money, in what they spend and as an excuse for higher taxes. This is that same in Donald Trump’s rhetoric.
But let’s look deeper at the facts.
El Paso is well known in Texas for being a Democrat Party stronghold in a state dominated by Republicans. The clear majority of the politicos wear the Democrat label. But it is only a label.
Example number one is Wiles publicly stating that El Paso is not a sanctuary city. That is the intent of the governor’s letter. Let’s look at other Texas communities.
The sheriff of Travis County stated that they would “limit” how they respond to the ICE requests. Austin is now ground-zero for the Greg Abbott’s Donald Trump ass-kissing threat to defund Texas communities that value their immigrants.
Other Texas communities that have had, or have immigrant-friendly policies include Dallas and Houston. It is unclear now as to how they are responding to Abbott’s threat.
But back to the money issue.
For years, I have been documenting how El Paso’s economy is artificially floated via taxes. Austin’s Sheriff’s office has a budget of about $169 million, per Fox News. They stand to lose $1.8 million, about one percent of their budget under Abbott’s threat.
El Paso, on the other hand, stands to lose about $3.6 million if it doesn’t comply with Greg Abbott’s demand. The El Paso Sheriff’s Department operates on a budget of about $103 million.
I am sure you can clearly see the money factor as well as the artificial economy of El Paso.
In regards to the party label issue, let’s look at the congressmen that did not attend Donald Trump’s inauguration in protest. Remember, Trump wears that Republican label.
Sixty-Seven Democrats did not attend the Trump inauguration as a protest. All of them, Democrats. The Texas delegation includes 11 Democrats. Of those, four did not attend the Trump inauguration in protest. They are Joaquin Castro (D-San Antonio), Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin), Al Green (D-Houston) and Filmon Vela (D-Brownsville).
Beto O’Rourke (D), the El Paso congressmen attended the Donald Trump inauguration because he “did not want to contribute to the undermining of national institutions.” (Diaz, Kevin; Castro, Doggett, join Democratic congressmen boycotting Trump’s inauguration; San Antonio Express News; January 17, 2017)
So much for encouraging diversity and inclusiveness in El Paso.
For me, the so-called Democrats in El Paso are Republicans in disguise so that they can get elected. Like everything else in El Paso politics, it is words that are used to distract from the reality. This is true for Donald Trump who is a Republican by label only.
El Paso is as unfriendly to immigrants as Trump is to Mexicans.
So, please, stop pretending otherwise because the truth is plain to see.
Martin
The post is non-sense subterfuge at it’s worse. Espraza protects all elected officials in ElPaso regardless of race or ethnicity who toe the line of the Progress Democratic Party or what we like calling the “PDP” in El Paso. The reason is Espraza eats and drinks politically from the same trough. The only relation the progressive Democrats in office in El Paso have with the Republicans is the Republican money men know it’s cheaper and easier to buy a progressive Democratic politician in El Paso than trying to fund and win a election with a Republican candidate. Sorry trying to some how connect the PDP in El Paso with Trump is bordering on delusional and hysterical lunatic fringe thinking. The PDP in El Paso screws the people of El Paso just fine with the help of PDP self interest minority voting block,since the majority of El Paso voters do not vote, in El Paso with out any the help or assistance from any out side interest.
it’s cheaper and easier to buy a progressive Democratic politician in El Paso
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Very true, and it is a real economic development advantage for El Paso – affordable corruption.
Jerry K, gee doggies the corruption make some feel in El Paso right down home like they have a little piece of the Banana Republic of Mexico paradise North of the border and their election official in El Paso like Espraza want to keep it that way. ;O)
Mordidacrats rule.
Mr. Paredes,
If you were ever trying to make a point about immigration, I’ve lost touch with what you were ever trying to say.
You don’t ever seem to ever commit to a point. You won’t admit that Mexican immigration policy is worse than the US policy. You won’t admit that Democrats have immigration policies that are inconsistent. What is it you want to change?