Republican National Hispanic Assembly

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9/22/2005
http://wisopinion.com/index.iml?mdl=article.mdl&article=2627

First Hispanic U.S. Commerce Secretary Touts Latino Influence in Milwaukee Visit

By Camille Solberg

MILWAUKEE -- Last week's visit to Milwaukee by the nation's first Hispanic U.S. Commerce secretary highlights the growing Latino influence on the U.S. economy.

Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, during his visit to the 26th Annual US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce National Convention and Business Expo, said the new Central American Trade Agreement (CAFTA) will be a "great opportunity'' to cultivate more business ties with Latin America. ``CAFTA provides an opportunity for U.S. businesses to sell more to Central American countries. It will also help Central America develop a business community to develop a growing middle class. What's good for the hemisphere is good for the area.

``I will be leading a trade mission to Central America in late October. We are taking business down so they can make contacts, establish businesses if possible. We got it through Congress. Now we are working hard to see to it is a success.''

Gutierrez will be visiting Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Other free trade agreements are being looked at and being negotiated with other countries. The secretary is hoping that they will be able to complete negotiations. "It's good for countries in Latin America, and it's good for the United States. The president said at the U.N. that trade is what lifts countries out of poverty. It's what gives people the opportunity to be participants in this very dynamic global economy. And countries that open up their economy grow faster than countries that don't. That is one of those realities that we have seen over time," the secretary said.

Gutierrez said the nation's economy is strong and said that tax reform was very good for businesses and jobs. "We have been creating jobs for over three years. The unemployment is down to below the average of the past three decades.

``We can keep that going. We need to make those tax cuts permanent. We would like to continue eliminating regulations that don't do anything for businesses. They obstruct small business people and small enterprises.

``The president wants to address health care. And that is an important expense to businesses and expense to consumers. The energy plan will also be important to grow in the future especially today when we are seeing the need for more sources of energy and to have a larger supply of our own oil. That's an important part of our growth. We need to keep on going. To keep what we have today going. We have the most vibrant economy in the industrialized world," he concluded.

As the first Hispanic U.S. secretary of Commerce Gutierrez would like to leave a legacy that enhances the Latino community and at the same time fulfils Bush's vision. "Well, I believe the president has a vision for the country; he has a very important vision for the economy. He believes in entrepreneurship. He believes in the power of the individual. He believes in personal accountability. He believes that anyone can make it in this country if they have the opportunities. To the extent that I can contribute to that and help Hispanic American start businesses, I will feel very good about that because I have contributed to the president's vision," said Gutierrez, formerly chairman of the board and CEO of Kellogg Company.

As a core member of President Bush's economic team, Gutierrez also related how the Bush administration is helping Latino businesses in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. "We created a call center in Washington, D.C. to be able to link up businesses that are seeking to help and Katrina evacuees. So very often a business will have material or products they want to donate but they don't know were to go or who needs it. What we do in the call center is to link up the two. There are quite a few minority small businesses affected," added Gutierrez.

He also touted Bush's Gulf opportunity zone that essentially gives businesses tax credits and tax incentives to invest back in the area. Businesses that were there before will come back and open up again. Gutierrez added that this will be very important for revitalizing that whole gulf area. "This was an area that was very much small business-focused. We are hoping that many of the evacuees take advantage of that and come back and start their lives. The president also announced the opportunity for low-income citizens of the Gulf states to receive a plot of land from the government. Then they will put what is called sweat equity into it. They will be able to build a home either through Habitat for Humanity or some other organizations. This will give people the opportunity of ownership," he said.

-- Solberg is a published writer and columnist based in Appleton.