Perry Hails Texas-Mexico Ties, Blasts Border Fence

MEXICO CITY — Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday criticized the proposed border wall between the U.S. and Mexico as he expressed optimism about the future of economic ties between his state and Mexico.

Perry is leading a trade mission of more than 150 Texas business leaders and state officials focused on developing partnerships in the energy sector, particularly renewable energies like wind power.

Perry told reporters that the border barrier — approved by Congress last fall and signed into law by President Bush in October — sends a "bad message" and it "absolutely won't work." Perry made the remarks before he was scheduled to meet with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, also an outspoken critic of the planned 700-mile wall between Brownsville, Texas and the Pacific Ocean.

"We know how to deal with border security and you don't do it by building a fence, you do it by putting boots on the ground," Perry said. "Those individuals who want to come legally ... we need those individuals to continue to grow our economy, wherever those jobs might be."

Perry said that he favors building short spans of walls in some urban areas. He also said immigrants should be issued identification cards with biometric data that would allow the government to keep tabs on them.

Under his plan, Perry said that if migrants paid their taxes and followed U.S. laws they would be able to stay in 24-month increments. Failure to abide by the rules would mean deportation or incarceration.

"I don't think this is that difficult of an issue, if Congress would have the maturity to ... cut out all the mean rhetoric," Perry said.

Perry also defended the state's preparations for Hurricane Dean. The combined federal and state bill is expected to be in the tens of millions of dollars, even though the storm didn't hit Texas.

"I'm not going to put the citizens of Texas lives at jeopardy trying to outguess a hurricane," Perry said. "We looked at this as quite an exercise in coordination that worked very well. ... If it means being a little over prepared, then God bless it."

Texas Secretary of State Phil Wilson said that Texas officials were finding "solid opportunities" to partner with Mexico in renewable energy projects.

"I hope to have some news (shortly)," he said.

Asked if he favors an opening of Mexico's nationalized oil industry to foreign investment, as some conservative economists both inside and outside of Mexico have urged, Perry said the issue was "not in our area of purview."

"We'll work within the parameters set by Mexican citizens and their elected officials," he said.

Some oil experts believe private investment is needed to spur exploration and boost dwindling production levels.

Opening up Pemex, as Mexico's national oil company is called, is touchy subject in Mexico, especially among leftist leaders. Calderon has tried to ease concerns that he plans to allow private investment in Mexico's oil industry, which was nationalized by former President Lazaro Cardenas in 1938.

Perry pointed out the strong links between Texas and Mexico, noting that Mexico is the state's top trading partner, receiving one-third of the state's exports, and that trade between the two has increased 300 percent since the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement in the mid-1990s.

He said big opportunities exist in sharing technology and know-how in the renewable energy industry, particularly wind energy.

"Both Mexico and Texas are going to need every source of energy we can appropriately get our hands around ... over the next two decades," Perry said.