Whitlock: These are the three questions I would ask President Biden

In case I do not get my media credentials approved by the White House in time for President Biden’s press conference in Brownsville this afternoon, I would like to share the three questions I would ask him.

Perhaps another Rio Grande Valley reporter could ask one or more of these questions?

Q1) With the closure of the sugar mill in Santa Rosa, the Valley has lost a $100 million industry, as well hundreds of jobs. The RGV Sugar Growers co-operative said they had no choice but to cease operations due to Mexico not releasing water into the Rio Grande, which it is supposed to do under the terms of a 1944 international water treaty. Mr. President, why is the U.S. State Department not doing more to get Mexico to comply with its water sharing obligations under the 1944 treaty?

Q2) Thanks to then-U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela of Brownsville, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was awarded an additional $5 million to dredge the ship channel at Port Mansfield. But, the Army Corps has moved $2.5 million of that $5 million to another project, outside of the Rio Grande Valley. Mr. President, why did that happen and what can you do to get that money back to Port Mansfield for a crucial dredging project?

Q3) Thanks to the leadership of state Rep. Terry Canales, a lot of Rio Grande Valley leaders are now realizing the importance of focusing on the region’s long term water needs. The Valley cannot continue on its current fast-growth trajectory without a secure water supply. A long-term solution is to build another dam on the Rio Grande to supplement Amistad and Falcon dams. This third dam is envisaged under the 1944 U.S.-Mexico Water Treaty. According to the treaty it would be built just upstream from Laredo. Mr. President, what can you do to work with Mexico on building the third dam, thereby safeguarding the Valley’s future growth?

By the way, for the Valley’s younger reporters, I was founding president of the Valley Press Club back in the 197Os!

And, I first reported on the need for a third dam on the Rio Grande back in 2009! Here is a video recording of the show:

Editor’s Note: The above guest column was penned by veteran broadcaster Ron Whitlock, of Ron Whitlock Reports. Whitlock is a former host of KRGV TV’s Valley Newsline and KVEO TV’s Ron Whitlock Reports. The column appears in The Rio Grande Guardian International News Service with the permission of the author. Whitlock can be reached by email via: ronjwhitlock@icloud.com. 

The post Whitlock: These are the three questions I would ask President Biden appeared first on Rio Grande Guardian.