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Do Relatives of Members of Congress Receive Special Treatment?
Guest Column | By Mike Cutler | July 1, 2008
An
unusual situation has arisen over the past week in which Congressman
Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) - the Chairman of the House Select Committee on
Intelligence - requested that the FBI, DHS and other agencies launch an
effort to help with the kidnapping of hiswife's distant relative in
Mexico. Why is this situation unusual? Because the relative is a
citizen of Mexico, abducted in Mexico by criminals who are believed to
be Mexican. One might well ask why the United States government would
become involved in a case that has absolutely no connection to our
country other than the relationship between Congressman Reyes and the
victim of the crime.
Officials of DHS said that the involvement
of our government was "routine." Ihave a real problem believing that
this was, in fact, "routine."
I find it amazing that the Mexican
government was so willing to help with this case when one considers
that the head of the Mexican agency that is the equivalent of our DEA
is assassinated within days after taking charge of the agency charged
with enforcing laws against narcotics trafficking in Mexico. And just a
couple of days ago, a Mexican judge released Jesus Navarro Montes. Montes is the prime suspect in the brutal slaying
of a United States Border Patrol Agent, Luis Aguilar, by running him down
as the agent was attempting to deploy devices in the road to stopa
smuggler's vehicle.
Yet, incredibly, within a couple of short
days, the Mexican government was able to achieve what is a
rarity, rescuing Silvestre Reyes' family member?
What is routine about this?
Furthermore, if you believe this is the routine way that our government does business, you need to read this article,
which details the perfunctory way that Congressman Reyes dealt with a
constituent whose family member was abducted in Mexico. According to the
El Paso Times, Congressman Reyes met with his constituents, the family
members of a United States citizen, a man described as a U.S. Navy
veteran, for about 15 minutes and apparently nothing has been done to
solve this crime.
Hervella said, "The way the U.S. and Mexican authorities moved to find his relative shows how some of us are treated like second-class citizens. Nobody in Mexico or the United States did anything to help us."
Hervella's godson, Saul Sanchez Jr., a U.S. Navy veteran, and his wife Abigail Sanchez, were last seen heading to a Juárez theater in 1996. They left two young children behind.
Reyes said Thursday he could not comment on Posselt's kidnapping because it is an ongoing criminal investigation.
All
Americans should have the right to presume that we would be treated the
same as any other American where law enforcement and other such issues
are concerned. The Declaration of Independence begins by saying, "All
men are created equal and they are endowed by their Creator with
certain unalienable rights...." There is nothing that says that members
of Congress are supposed to more equal.
This news article makes
it appear that unless you area well-connected member of Congress or
some other high official, don't hold your breathe if you expect the
government to provide you with assistance!
Congress should call for an investigation into the Reyes matter. It's up to the American public to see that it is done.
FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributing Editor Michael Cutler is a Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies and a well-respected authority on immigration and border security issues.
Guest columns do not necessarily reflect the views of Accuracy in Media or its staff.
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