Memorandum discussing material for Geraldine Ferraro\u27s speeches in Texas and Southwest.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_materials_1984/1005/thumbnail.jp

McFadden, Steve

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Fordham University School of Law

Fordham Law SchoolFLASH: The Fordham Law Archive of Scholarship and HistoryCampaign Materials 1984 Vice-Presidential Campaign7-25-1984Memorandum from Steve McSpaddenSteve McFaddenFollow this and additional works at: https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_materials_1984Part of the Law CommonsThis Book is brought to you for free and open access by the 1984 Vice-Presidential Campaign at FLASH: The Fordham Law Archive of Scholarship andHistory. It has been accepted for inclusion in Campaign Materials by an authorized administrator of FLASH: The Fordham Law Archive of Scholarshipand History. For more information, please contact tmelnick@law.fordham.edu.Recommended CitationMcFadden, Steve, "Memorandum from Steve McSpadden" (1984). Campaign Materials. 6.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_materials_1984/6DOUG BARNARO. JR . GA C"AIRMAN ROfrriJAl 0 0 COLEMAN TlX JOHN M SPRATI, JR SC JOHN CONYERS. J P. MICH ELUOTI H. LEVITAS GA. HENRY A. WAXMAN. CALIF MEMORANDUM 'IO: Eleanor lewis NINETY-EIGHTH CONGRESS Congress of tbt Wnittb ~tates J;Joust of Rtprtstntatibts COMMERCE, CONSUMER, AND MONETARY AFFAIF\S SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS RAYBURN HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING, ROOM B-377 WASHINGTON, D.C. 20515 July 25, 1984 Administrative Assistant to Congresswaran Ferraro, 312 Cannon H.O.B. FR.CM: Steve McSpadden Staff Counsel J UDD GREGG N H W ILUAM F CLINGER. JR PA TOM LEWIS. FLA MJJORITY~2021 22~__.•07 SUBJECT: Material for Possible Speeches in Texas and the Southwest on the President's Premises and Neglect in Response to Serious Problans cause::i by the Mexican Peso Devaluations Congratulations on CongresS\\Utlal1 Ferraro's selection as the vice presi-dential naninee. I am very proud of her. And I am sure that this has change::i your life. As you may recall, at Bill Lelx>vich' s suggestion we JIEt in January to discuss p::>ssible job opportunities for me. I should rep::>rt that Stanley Bach and Walter Oleszch were very helpful in suggesting names of people to call, and, once again, I appreciated your telephoning th~. ' I read that Texas Governor White had invited Ms. Ferraro to campaign there. I therefore want to bring to your attention a copy of a House report (enclose::i), which the Government Operations Crnrnittee issue::i last Novanber, which I prepare::i. It strongly criticizes the President's failure to respond adequately to serious hardships suffere::i by oorder businesses and ccmnunities (including Tuscon and San Antonio),cause::i by the severe Mexican Peso devaluations. Material in the report, directly implicating the President and Vice President, could be useful in campaign speeches in Texas and the Southwest. During the surrrner of 1982, due to drastic peso devaluations and currency controls, Mexican nationals greatly curtailed their substantial purchases of U.S. gocrls and services, including focrl, clothing, autcnotive parts, electronic goods, health services and. even education for their children. Hundre::is of businesses failed, tax revenue fell, and uneuployrnent reached extrerely high levels, fran 37 percent in calexico, calif., to 27.4 percent in Laredo, Texas. In a May 5, 1983, speech in San Antonio to a Hispanic group, President Reagan established an interagency group to examine the problem. (This resulted just after Senator Tcmer wrote a critical letter to White House Chief of Staff James Baker.) This interagency task force issue::i a rep::>rt in July 1983, which contained numerous reccmne.ndations, such as a tanporary Office of Border Affairs and Federal activity to facilitate the creation of new jobs and econanic diversity. President Reagan proceede::i to disregard alroc>st all of the recrnmendations,and they received no publicity. . "" -2-Then on August 13, 1983, during an El Paso speech to Hispanic Veterans, the President annowiced the creation of the Soutllv.iest Border Action Group and placed Vice President Bush in charge. This interagency group did little but discuss press relations, duplicate sane of the work of the earlier group, and amass a list of routine Federal grants and loans to border crnmunities and states, which were announced every week by the Vice President. Our report found that many of these announcem:mts were deceptive, because many of the carmunities ultimately receiving the grants or loans were either many miles away fran the border, srnetimes hundreds of miles, or were not at all brpacted by the border's econanic problens. For example, a Fanners Hare loan Admini-stration loan guarantee for a "well-to-do" housing project near Palm Springs was mentioned as a border assistance loan. Consequently, several days after our report was issued, the White House replaced Vice President Bush with Cabinet Secretary Craig Fuller, as head of this action group. In August 1982, the Administration announced with much fanfare the SBA Peso Pack Program, prilnarily to help then-Gov. Clements and senatorial candidate Pete Wilson. Hundreds of small businessmen approached SBA expecting help fran a special low-interest loan and loan guarantee program. They became frustrated and disillusioned when they found that "Peso Pack" was nothing rrore than SBA regular loan program with interest rates of approximately 15 percent and strict restrictions. As our Ccmni:ttee report states: The peso pack program was a Federal response to a difficult situation, particularly publicized for rnaxirnurn political brpact. The program involved making left-over rroney available to border businesses and publicizing the availability of that m:::mey--hyping it in the words of one SBA official. Often both Derocratic and Republican Administrations announce new Federal programs during campaigns. Here, h:Mever, the administration and the SBA •• Emphasized an implicitly new program, designed to alleviate the negative brpact of the peso's devaluations on border business, which was not new-, but which was instead deficient, inad~te, and possibly of short duration [because the Administration asked for no new- direct loan funds for FY 1984, beginning one rronth after the program's announcement]. Page 41. One SBA official called the program a "political sham to the Republican party," and he indicated that no rroney had been funded for it, although SBA heralded it as a $200 million program. The President could have declared an "econanic disaster" along the border, which v.ould have allowed SBA to make disaster loans available at 8 percent, but he refused to do so. And the Treasury and the Federal Reserve consistently . .._. refused to take even minimal steps to enable Mexican nationals at the border to convert pesos into dollars, even in reduced amount, to continue their U.S. purchases. This Administration's response to the econcmic plight of the Mex.ico-U.S. border area, one of our Nation's poorest regiorut derronstrates severe neglect, false pranises, broken ccmnitnents, and deceptive and inaccurate statements. I do hope that sare of these points and vacts can be v.orked into campaign speeches. I w::ruld be very happy to elaborate or to discuss this further. With very best wishes, 

Memorandum from Steve McSpadden

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Memorandum from Steve McSpadden

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