What I saw was not entirely what I expected. I expected charred buildings. I expected soldiers with automatic weapons everywhere. I expected empty streets and residents skulking around in fear. To be sure, there were signs of danger — but in many parts of Juárez, there were also people determined to remain, to do their best to live as normally as possible.
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Worse Than Colombia
That’s how Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw described the violence raging in Mexico’s drug war at a House hearing on Tuesday.
TribBlog: IAPA to Latin America: “Enough With the Apathy”
The unsolved murder of a border journalist gunned down in front of his daughter has prompted the Inter American Press Association to call on Mexican President Felipe Calderon to address the country’s “negligence, apathy and irregularities” when investigating the deaths of members of the media.
TribBlog: McCraw Says Mexico Worse Than Colombia
The situation in Mexico is worse now than the Colombian drug war of the 1980s and 1990s ever was, Texas Department of Homeland Security Director Steve McCraw told state lawmakers today.
James Baker Says …
The former secretary of state talked foreign policy, partisan politics and the national debt at an event co-presented by the Tribune, the Center for Politics and Governance at UT’s LBJ School of Public Affairs, and the LBJ Library.
“The Dumping Point”
Detainees with mental impairments lack proper medical evaluation when they enter the federal immigration detention system and don’t get adequate medication and access to social services, according to a new study.
Remember Immigration?
Lawmakers are reeling from the bruising political battle over health care reform and are loath to take on another divisive issue and additional risky votes. So the prospects remain dim for legislation that would improve border security, provide a pathway to citizenship for millions and crack down on unscrupulous employers — but that doesn’t mean everyone’s forgotten about it, as the hundreds of thousands of advocates who marched on Washington, D.C., last weekend can attest.
TribBlog: Border Chief Gets Recess Appointment
The president’s nominee for commissioner of Customs and Border Protection gets the job without Senate confirmation.
2010: White Attacks Perry’s Border Crime Claims
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White today called on GOP Gov. Rick Perry to remove claims on his public and campaign Web sites that crime on the Texas border has dropped 65 percent. Perry campaign spokesman Mark Miner defended the claims. He said Perry’s claim refers to temporary crime drops in discreet areas during so-called “border surge” operations.
TribBlog: Mexico-U.S. Launch New Programs
Senior leaders from the United States and Mexico agreed the two countries will begin swapping intelligence on suspected terrorists and Mexican felons following discussions in Mexico City on Tuesday.





