Posted on 02/11/2014 12:50:38 PM PST by Responsibility2nd
Abbott: RGV corruption cases ‘resemble third world country’
SAN ANTONIO - Greg Abbott, the Republican frontrunner for governor, tweeted he’ll have a rebuttal to the uproar over his “Third World country” comment.
Referring to his Democratic opponent Wendy Davis, Abbott said, “It will show how clueless she is.”
In a tweet as well as a letter to the editor of the McAllen Monitor, Davis called on Abbott “to apologize for his offensive comments about South Texas."
I join @monitornews in calling for Greg Abbott to apologize for his offensive comments about South Texas: http://t.co/dDt1KouSNW
— Wendy Davis (@WendyDavisTexas) February 9, 2014 She said Abbott’s message is “untrue, hurts our state, harms economic development in our border communities.”
Greg Abbott’s comparison of South Texas to a third world country is not only untrue, it also hurts our state: http://t.co/OBV6vxBVuB
— Wendy Davis (@WendyDavisTexas) February 9, 2014 Last Tuesday in Dallas, during a speech about border security, Abbott described recent cases in the Rio Grande Valley as “this creeping corruption resembles Third World country practices.”
Abbott was referring to several high-profile cases tied to drug smuggling, such as the now-defunct Panama Unit, a drug task force that included the son of the Hidalgo County Sheriff.
In its Sunday editorial, the McAllen Monitor also called for Abbott to apologize.
The editorial read, “Abbott would not have made a similar comparison to Third World countries had he been talking about corruption in Dallas or Houston. ... We need to declare as a region that we are tired of having Hispanics act as the bogeyman of Texas.”
Dr. Henry Flores, a political analyst and professor at St. Mary’s University, said cases have been prosecuted in the Rio Grande Valley, but he said corruption exists almost anywhere there is power to be had, regardless of race.
Flores said Abbott’s remarks will only further widen the racial divide in Texas politics.
“What he’s really doing is appealing to extremists in his party,” Flores said.
As a result, Flores said he does not expect Abbott to apologize.
“I don’t think he’ll apologize because that’s just not who he is. But he needs to apologize,” Flores said.
Flores said the latest war of words between Abbott and Davis will earn a mention in his new book.
He said Abbott’s words did not target Hispanics directly, but he is using them to his political advantage.
“Strategic racism, that’s what that is,” Flores said.
The Rio Grande Valley is one of the most beautiful places to be on God's green earth. But Abbott is correct. The Mexican culture dominates the place and corruptions is rampant.
Abbott’s reply to his critics....
____________________________________________________________________
Public service is a public trust. As attorney general, I have prosecuted judges, district attorneys and other public officials across Texas who violated that trust, who have been corrupted.
While most all who serve the citizens of Texas do so honorably, left ignored, a virus can quickly spread.
This corruption — wherever it occurs — erodes the social fabric of our communities and destroys Texans’ trust and confidence in government.
As your attorney general — and hopefully as your future governor — my job is to ensure your families are safe and your opportunities for prosperity are many. That job includes tackling the problem of corruption by public officials.
Honest, hardworking businessmen and women, single-parent families seeking a better future and citizens who play by the rules, work hard and strive for the American Dream — they are the real victims of that corruption.
To ignore their pleas for help is to allow the problem to thrive.
I will not cede ground to those who corrupt and twist our system of justice. This is not the Texas we know, the America we love, nor the system that we want for our children.
The Rio Grande Valley — like all of Texas — is filled with ethical, hardworking families whose very foundation is based on integrity. But, even The Monitor recently noted, “the pall of corruption has dogged the Rio Grande Valley and continues today” and “cases of public officials on the take have spiked.”
On Jan. 1, The Monitor published a Valley Morning Star article entitled: “Depth of corruption in Cameron Co. hard to believe, says judge.” It detailed how a “federal investigation found corruption in the Cameron County’s legal system and judiciary to be so pervasive that most people wouldn’t believe it.” That led to a former judge’s conviction for accepting money in return for favorable rulings in a public corruption investigation that included a former district attorney and a former Texas legislator.
And there have been other stories about law enforcement officers in other Texas counties involved in money laundering, drug smuggling and accepting bribes to protect the cartels and their smuggling routes.
Sadly, these violations of the public’s trust are just a few of many allegations I am familiar with in my role as attorney general.
Does corruption occur across all of Texas? Absolutely. I’ve prosecuted it. And it is abhorrent wherever it occurs.
My comments about “corruption resembling third-world country practices” are as true today as when I said them last week. My goal is to make them untrue tomorrow. Those comments were not directed at the Rio Grande Valley — they apply wherever corruption is found. I’d encourage all readers to share their thoughts on my detailed plan and join the discussion at http://townhall254.gregabbott.com/.
It does not matter where public corruption occurs in Texas; it must be stopped. Texans deserve better, no matter their ZIP code.
The Monitor was misguided to suggest that my legitimate concerns about corruption stem from being a “white conservative” or from “xenophobia.”
Like many Texas families, mine is multicultural by choice. My family gatherings include the Segura, Cuellar, Rocha, Torres, Gamez and Valdillez families. We share more than a meal; we share conservative values.
Conservative is not a color, it is not a race, it is not an ethnicity. It is a commitment to the idea that every American has a chance to succeed; that faith and family are foremost; that jobs and education are the best pathway to a better future; and that secure communities are a part of all that.
I will do more than talk about corruption. As governor, I will build on my record of keeping Texans safe, marshal the tools we need to secure our border, enforce the rule of law and rout out corruption wherever it attacks.
Public service must be built on public trust.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott is running for the Republican gubernatorial nomination
http://www.themonitor.com/opinion/columnists/article_d6d33a72-92b3-11e3-b173-0017a43b2370.html
spade = wetback
I like a candidate who doesn’t apologize when he’s right.
First World problems,, jeeez
lol
“I’m sorry you look like a 3rd world country!”
I wish Abbott would say, “Here’s my apology....F You...THAT’S my apology.”
Maybe she did and I missed it.
Oh Flores can puke me a river.
I like how Wendy is all over this “controversy”. Trying to make something out of nothing.
I’d also like Wendy to spend a week down on the streets of the RGV some time. Her bleach blond bubble brained head would be quite blown away.
Abbott’s right. Davis IS clueless.
Wendy is grasping at straws. The corrupt press in RGV is happy to help her in hopes she as Governor would make the corrupt life easier for those siding with the Mex Cartels.
Davis will not be Governor.
Bravo Greg!
Yeah, she can open carry in that 3rd world country while she's at it.
truth be know, south texas has been annexed by mexico, so it is a 3rd world country.
Would it have been racist to use the phrase Banana Republic?
Wendy Davis’ campaign team staff made fun of Greg Abbott’s handicap and are looking for some way to put him on “sensitivity” defense.
bump
Being a conservative means never having to say you’re sorry.
Greg Abbott not only refused to apologize, he effectively defended himself, his statement and conservatism itself.
The Monitor should apologize to him!
Abbott is emerging as a very impressive human being. He should be a great governor...and, down the line, may be even more.
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