Schwarzenegger/ Wilden Pump's John Allen & Mexico

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Harsh words for Washington on immigration
- Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer
Saturday, November 11, 2006



(11-11) 04:00 PST Monterrey, Mexico -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger told Mexican President-elect Felipe Calderon that the inability of the U.S. government to approve a comprehensive overhaul of its immigration policies, especially a guest worker program, represents a "total failure."

"It's insane not to ... have been able to accomplish that this year," said Schwarzenegger, in a conversation at the transition office of Calderon, who will be inaugurated Dec. 1. "I thought it was a total failure. ... (Right now) there are crops in California spoiling because we can't get enough workers," he said. "And it has a direct effect on our economy."

Schwarzenegger, in a 45-minute meeting with Calderon, also urged the president-elect to lift the embargo that remains on California spinach since the recent E. coli scare, asking his help in returning the product to Mexican grocery shelves. To underscore his efforts, the governor appeared at a trade show in Monterrey, where against the backdrop of a huge billboard featuring his face and the words "California-Mexico Partnership,'' he sampled the "amigo salad,'' made with California spinach and Mexican products.

The frank conversation -- and what appeared to be the GOP governor's strong critique of the Republican-controlled Congress on immigration -- came as Schwarzenegger plunged into a second day of his Mexican trade mission, in which he stressed technology and trade issues.

Schwarzenegger flew to Monterrey, a dynamic industrial and high-tech city in central Mexico stocked with American businesses like Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. He signed a memorandum of understanding with Gov. Jose Natividad Gonzalez Paras of Nuevo Leon state intended to strengthen academic, technological and economic exchanges.

Schwarzenegger urged the Mexican president-elect to address intellectual property and piracy -- issues he also underscored during a trade mission to China last year. Part of the two leaders' conversation was videotaped and made available to reporters.

Schwarzenegger also said he was pleased in his landslide re-election to receive more than 40 percent of the Latino vote. But he appeared to acknowledge his shaky standing with Latino voters, saying that for them, "the sticking point is driver's licenses."

The California governor, who has repeatedly vetoed legislation that would permit undocumented immigrants to obtain driver's licenses, told Calderon that he is waiting for regulations from the federal Real ID Act to be finalized "so there's a certain uniformity."

He told Calderon that he has been asked repeatedly by reporters in Mexico about the issue, noting that he reminds them that Mexico does not allow illegal immigrants to have driver's licenses.

In Monterrey, business leaders who attended the trade exposition -- and who have been along for the Schwarzenegger mission in Mexico -- say there have been rewards already.

John Allen, president of Wilden Pump & Engineering Co., based in Grand Terrace (San Bernardino County), said Schwarzenegger's efforts have had measurable results: His business announced it had secured a $500,000 contract in Mexico as a result of the trade mission.

Allen's firm came away from Schwarzenegger's China trade mission last year with $100,000 worth of business for his firm and its partners. Allen said this week that while "China set a measurable track record and provided good results ... Mexico could be even more lucrative."

Allen said that as Schwarzenegger completes his mission, he has seen evidence of a trend toward "backshoring." He defined that as the tendency of many businesses like his own, which had established trade with China, to consider Mexico instead. He said that while labor costs are higher in Mexico, they are offset because it is easier to set up business in North America, and transportation costs and shipping delays that can affect Asian partners are avoided.

"People are realizing that Mexico is closer logically and the distance traveled is less -- so they're beginning to take a second look at Mexico," Allen said. "Mexico is so much more in sync with California, because there are so many cultural and geographic ties. And doing business in Monterrey is not much different than doing business in Dallas."

Throughout the day, Schwarzenegger appeared to be relishing the opportunity to push California products, appearing on stage with a Mexican chef at one point to showcase the state's agricultural products. As he assembled his salad, the California governor -- always the salesman -- amused onlookers by reminding them to buy California spinach at least a dozen times, saying to laughs that "it builds muscles.''

E-mail Carla Marinucci at cmarinucci@sfchronicle.com.

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