The requirements for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Mexican Truck Demonstration Project have been met, and some 37 Mexican trucking companies have been approved to run their long-haul rigs through the U.S. starting as early as Sept. 1, according to a Mexican government report.

In the United States, the inspector general of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Aug. 6 issued to the House and Senate Appropriations Committee an audit about implementing NAFTA's cross-border trucking provisions, the last hurdle DOT faced before allowing the Mexican truck demonstration project to begin.

As required by Congress, the report was withheld from public release until August 21 – 15 days after being delivered to Congress.

At that point, industry commentators instantly noted that the FMCSA inspector general requested that additional improvements be made in two areas: to improve the quality of the data used to monitor Mexican commercial driver traffic convictions in the United States and to ensure adequate capacity to inspect Mexican buses.

The first industry reaction was that the report had blocked DOT from allowing the Mexican truck demonstration project to start until the FMCSA had adequately satisfied the deficiencies noted in these two recommendations.

English Calls on Administration to Halt
Cross-Border Trucking Program

Jeopardizes Safety and Security of Americans

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Phil English (R-Pa.) is calling on the Bush Administration to halt the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) plans to provide Mexican motor-carriers unrestricted access in the United States. English was joined by a bipartisan group of 112 House lawmakers in a letter sent to the president on Monday.

“The Cross Border Demonstration Program would give Mexican truck drivers unfettered access to the United States without a demonstrable way to verify their identity, immigration status and length of stay in United States,” the members wrote. “The program would open major loopholes that would allow violators to disregard our laws because we have no verifiable system in place to identify and deal with them.”

Read the letter that 112 lawmakers signed and sent to President Bush six weeks ago, here:

http://www.house.gov/list/press/pa03_english/truck0707.html

I'm sick of hearing "You need to learn Spanish because there are so many Spanish speaking people here." Why should the U.S. spend billions of dollars a year for foreign language studies, particularly Spanish, if the Mexicans are coming here? Just because there's an influx of illegal Mexicans jumping the border, we have to emphasize on Spanish?? I don't think the Mexican government would be so kind if many Americans moved to Mexico. They probably wouldnt stress English studies just to better comfort Americans living in their own country. Shouldn't immigrants be required to know basic English, instead of virtually requiring the American population to learn their language?
Although it is good to know Spanish, it shouldn't be the preferred language to learn? For example, many parents in the U.S. make their kids learn spansh BECAUSE of the influx of mexicans here. it's nonsense to accomodate foreigners(many illegal) so royally. I want to learn Italian, but no, Spanish will be better for my future because of this issue
you don't understand; I acknowledge that is better for my future and in some cases I will be payed more, but my point is that shouldn't be!
It shoudn't be that Spanish in particular will help me the most in my future; it shouldn't be that knowing particularly Spanish will earn me a higher paycheck, it shouldn't be that Mexican immigrants are influencing America so much!

By the way, for another person, if knowing basic English was made an actual amendment, wouldn't it be a clean slate? The politicians wouldn't be able get the advantage from the immigrants that way.
Although not all spanish speaking people are mexicans, can you tell me that if there were no illegal mexicans in the us, spanish would still be as popular in the us? no, you cant. I just think that if the mexican immigrants were finally kept at a limit, and the borders were enforced, the mexicans in the us wouldnt be able to say "there are so many of us here, so that's why you guys should learn our language instead of french, italian, chinese, etc. but whatever, i've decided to stop added on to this post because after reading the feedback, I've begun to realize that any argument in favor of the mexicans can be struck down with a counterexample just as valid, if not more valid than the original. It's just not right that so many mexicans are in our country, and even more so that we are accomodating them, despite whether or not english is hard to learn. WE live here now, and have lived here for the past centuries, so either respect where you're invading or get out please!

It seems that whenever I talk about the drug cartels invading America and killing American citizens, I get a couple of thumbs down for it. Why is this? I seriously have no clue why some people would have any objection with me pointing out the fact that lawless groups with military weapons (some tracked back to the Mexican government) are operating within America, and innocent Americans are paying the price for it. Can someone enlighten me as to why this is?

Bonus Question: Would you buy an autobiography about an average Joe?

I'm writing a thesis paper on this year's outbreak, and I need to know when the Mexican government began closing schools and public functions, and passing out masks. Much appreciated, thanks.
An exact date would be best.

Rosanna Pulido, Illinois spokesperson for You Don't Speak for Me, a national coalition of American Hispanics who oppose illegal immigration, states, "Actually Elvira Arellano is a testament to the utter failure of the Mexican government. Because of widespread corruption, the government of Mexico has consistently failed to provide economic opportunity to millions of Mexican people and encourages them to violate U.S. immigration laws. The Mexican government could care less about people like Ms. Arellano. What they are really here to protect is the billion a year that the millions of Mexicans living in the U.S. send home to Mexico," Pulido charged.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20070209/pl_usnw/mexican_legislators_will_travel_to_chicago_to_visit_elvira_arellano