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Couple receives sentence Both were convicted of illegal firearm possession S P ECIAL T O T HE T I ME S
A 43-year-old Zapata man and his common-law wife have been ordered to federal prison following their convictions of being felons in possession of firearms. Jesus Jose De Jesus and Amira Elizabeth Saenz, 35, each pleaded guilty March 21, 2017.
U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña ordered De Jesus to serve 46 months in prison, while Saenz received a six-month term of imprisonment plus an additional six months to serve on home confinement for revocation of a prior supervised release. After completion of their sentences, both will serve three years of supervised release.
De Jesus is a convicted sex offender and multiple-time convicted felon. Saenz is a convicted drug felon. As such, both are prohibited from possessing firearms per federal law. On Oct. 27, 2015, law enforcement officers were conducting compliance checks on sex offenders in Zapata County, at which time they encountered four firearms
inside a residential trailer located on the 3400 block of South U.S. Zapata Highway 83 in Zapata. The next day, agents recovered the four firearms located in the bedroom the couple shared. The firearms included a .308 caliber rifle, .22-caliber rifle, seven millimeter rifle and a
Alamo continues on A6
TAMIU continues on A6
Eric Gay / AP
Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush is overseeing a 7-year, $450 million revamp of the Alamo, where 189 independence fighters were killed in 1836. That includes restoration of historical structures and building a new museum and visitors' center.
Fighters’ ties to slavery among issues surrounding renovation efforts
SAN ANTONIO — Remember the Alamo? A new Texas battle is brewing over how best to do so. Land Commissioner George P. Bush is overseeing a 7-year revamp of the shrine where 189 Texas independence fighters
were killed by Mexican Gen. Santa Anna’s troops in 1836. The site’s size would quadruple after excavation and restoration of historical structures, the closing of nearby streets and the building of a more than 100,000-square foot museum to house artifacts and guide visitors through the Alamo’s history. The project has raised the ire
of some conservatives, who worry that the Battle of the Alamo will be sanitized by “political correctness” at a time when Confederate monuments are being removed across the country. Even though the Alamo battle was well before the Civil War, some of the participants were slaveholders. A flashpoint has been the fate of the Cenotaph, a 60-foot
SPECIAL TO THE TIME S
(18.29-meter) granite monument near the Alamo completed in 1940 and engraved with the names of those killed during the battle. The city of San Antonio wants to move it to a site somewhat farther away. But critics fear the Cenotaph will suffer the fate of some Confederate monuments and be banished.
NEW BATTLE OF THE ALAMO IS BREWING
A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
School quickly attracting newcomers More students are choosing to ‘Go Beyond’ at Texas A&M International University and the university saw notable enrollment increases for fall 2017, especially among first-time freshmen and graduate students. A total of 59 Texas counties are represented in the student body. Those with the highest student enrollment include Webb, Zapata, Maverick and Starr. TAMIU’s total student enrollment for fall 2017 is 7,654, a 3 percent increase over fall 2016 (7,416). Also, first-time freshmen enrollment, totaling 1,229, represents an historic 10 percent hike compared to last Fall. The freshmen class comes to TAMIU from 120 different high schools, with 20% hailing from high schools outside of Laredo. Total semester credit hours (SCH) are up 5.2 percent, from 83,217 last Fall to 87,535 this Fall. Both undergraduate and graduate enrollment, including doctoral students, is up 3 percent, at 6,804 and 850 respectively. In addition, full-time female student enrollment increased 9.2 percent over the same period last year, to 3,276 students. Full-time male student enrollment increased 2.5 percent over last year to 2,154. TAMIU President Pablo Arenaz said it’s an exciting time to be a student at TAMIU, as the university is quickly becoming a destination institution of higher education. “At my investiture last year, I challenged our faculty, staff and students to join me in helping TAMIU to become a ‘destination’ university. In witnessing this enrollment increase and knowing that more students are choosing to attend TAMIU over other universities, I think we are well on our way,” Arenaz said, noting, “Over the past year, TAMIU has earned significant accolades from independent, national publications and students are realizing that at TAMIU they can get a quality, world-class education at an affordable price.” Most recently, TAMIU
Couple continues on A6
TEXAS GENERAL LAND OFFICE
By Will Weissert
TAMIU sees record enrollment
NATIONAL SECURITY
Trump’s border wall models take shape in San Diego By Elliot Spagat A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
SAN DIEGO — The last two of eight prototypes for President Donald Trump’s proposed border wall took shape Thursday at a construction site in San Diego. The prototypes form a tightly packed row of imposing concrete and metal panels, including
one with sharp metal edges on top. Another has a surface resembling an expensive brick driveway. Companies have until Oct. 26 to finish the models but Border Patrol spokesman Theron Francisco said the last two came into profile, with crews installing a corrugated metal surface on the eighth model on a dirt lot just a few steps from
homes in Tijuana, Mexico. As the crews worked, three men and two women from Nepal, ages 19 to 30, jumped a short rusted fence from Tijuana into the construction site and were immediately stopped by agents on horseback. Francisco said there have been four or five other illegal crossing attempts at the site since work began Sept. 26.
The models, which cost the government up to $500,000 each, were spaced 30 feet (9.1 meters) apart. Slopes, thickness and curves vary. One has two shades of blue with white trim. The others are gray, tan or brown — in sync with the desert. Bidding guidelines call for the prototypes to stand between 18 and 30 Wall continues on A6
Gregry Bull / AP
Crews look through a border wall prototype near the border with Tijuana, Mexico on Thursday in San Diego. Companies are nearing an Oct. 26 deadline to finish building eight prototypes of President Donald Trump's proposed border wall with Mexico.
Zin brief A2 | Saturday, October 21, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
CALENDAR
AROUND THE NATION
TODAY IN HISTORY
SATURDAY, OCT. 21
ASSOCIATED PRE SS
Dia del Rio Paso del Indio Nature Trail Workday. 7:30 a.m. registration @ Lamar Bruni Vergara Environmental Science Center (LCC main campus by the windmills). Help the Rio Grande International Study Center mulch, clean and beautify Laredo’s oldest nature trail. Complimentary lunch and T-shirts. Free event. The American Cancer Society’s 3rd annual Glow in Pink Power Walk. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. TAMIU Quad Area. There will also be food, games, and selfie booths for a small donation. The winner of the Real Men Wear Pink campaign will be announced. Register online at relayforlife.org/ pinkwalkwebbtx. Registration is $15 online and $20 onsite. Children 5 and under enter free. For more information, call 956-319-3100. El Centro de Laredo Farmers Market. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Veterans Plaza (Jarvis Plaza) in downtown Laredo. Free and open to the public. This month’s theme is NFL (wear your favorite jersey). Free parking in El Metro Transit Center, 1301 Farragut (with a market purchase voucher). There will also be music by Carlos Canseco, dance performance by Urban Street Dance Studio, pumpkin carving contest and cupcake decorating by Piece of Cake.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 25 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
SATURDAY, OCT. 28 Dia Del Rio Loving Laredo Hike at Dusk. 5:30 p.m. Benavides Sports Complex, 600 S. Bartlett. Join the Rio Grande International Study Center for a Halloween-inspired hike at the Chacon Hike & Bike Trail with bat watching at dusk at the Meadow Street Bridge. Free event.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 1 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
SATURDAY, NOV. 4 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions. 8th annual Birdies on the Rio golf tourney. 7 a.m. registration at the Max Mandel Municipal Golf Course. Join the Rio Grande International Study Center for the biggest, baddest golf tournament in town. $150 per golfer (all-inclusive). Register at www.rgisc.org. Holy Redeemer Church garage sale. 7 a.m. - 1 p.m. 1602 Garcia Street. From toys to clothes, the church says the public will be able to find a plethora of items on sale at very good prices. For more information, contact Amparo Ugarte at 956-286-0862.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 8 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions. The Nature Talk on "Introduction to Beekeeping." 6:30 p.m. Lamar Bruni Vergara Environmental Science Center at Laredo Community College. Nature Talks are sponsored by the Brush Country Chapter of Texas Master Naturalists. The presenter will be Jesus Jimenez. All Nature Talks are free and open to the public.
THURSDAY, NOV. 9 First United Methodist Church Annual Rummage Sale. 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. 1220 McClelland Church’s Fellowship Hall
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2017 First United Methodist Church Annual Rummage Sale. 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. 1220 McClelland Church’s Fellowship Hall
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2017 First United Methodist Church Annual Rummage Sale. 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., 1220 McClelland Church’s Fellowship Hall
Chase Stevens-Pool / Getty Images
Pastor Mike Ellingsen speaks during a funeral for Las Vegas police officer Charleston Hartfield in Henderson, Nevada. Hartfield was killed during the Oct. 1 shooting in Las Vegas.
SLAIN OFFICER LAID TO REST HENDERSON, Nev. — An off-duty police officer who was among 58 people killed in the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history was honored with a posthumous promotion to Army first sergeant during an emotional funeral service Friday. Hundreds of police officers in uniform packed the Henderson, Nevada, church as pallbearers guided the casket of Charleston Hartfield, 34, which was draped in a U.S. flag. He was an off-duty police officer who was among 58 people killed when a gun-
Federal judge refuses to erase Arpaio conviction A federal judge on Thursday shot down former Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s bid to sweep his criminal record clean. Arpaio, the controversial former lawman in Arizona’s Maricopa County, was granted a pardon by President Donald Trump on Aug. 25. He had been found in criminal contempt after a five-day bench trial earlier this year and
man opened fire from a high-rise hotel into a crowded outdoor concert in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Some saluted and at least one man wept as a phalanx of more than 50 police motorcycles with lights flashing led a pickup truck bearing the flag-draped casket on a sunny and breezy day that had palm trees waving in the wind. He was an 11-year police veteran, a married father of a son and a daughter, who served in the U.S. Army in Iraq and the Nevada Army National Guard.
faced the possibility of up to six months in jail. After the pardon, Arpaio petitioned the court to clear his record and prevent the ruling from being used in future litigation. The case raised the novel question of how far a presidential pardon actually reaches. In her ruling, U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton said the pardon only freed Arpaio from possible punishment. In a four-page order offering a check on the president’s exec-
utive power, Bolton wrote that a pardon could not erase the facts of the case. “The power to pardon is an executive prerogative of mercy, not of judicial recordkeeping,” Bolton wrote in a four-page decision. The president issued the pardon, and Arpaio was spared “from any punishment that might otherwise have been imposed,” the judge wrote. “It did not, however, ‘revise the historical facts’ of this case.” — Compiled from AP reports
AROUND THE WORLD Former death camp guard facing charges BERLIN — A former guard at the Majdanek death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland has been charged in Germany with being an accessory to murder for allegedly serving there during a period when at least 17,000 Jews were killed, prosecutors said Friday. The 96-year-old Frankfurt resident, whose name wasn’t released under German privacy regulations, is alleged to have served at the death camp near the Polish city of Lublin between August 1943 and January 1944. Frankfurt prosecutors allege the man worked as a perimeter guard and in the camp’s guard towers as a 22-year-old member of the SS’s Death’s Head division. In particular, the indictment accuses the man of supporting the so-called Operation “Ern-
Czarek Sokolowski / Associated Press
German prosecutors say they have charged a former guard at the Majdanek death camp with being an accessory to murder .
tefest” — Operation Harvest Festival — on November 3, 1943. On that day, at least 17,000 Jewish prisoners from the Majdanek camp and others who were being used as forced laborers in and around Lublin were shot in ditches just outside the camp. Music was blared from the Majdanek loudspeakers to
mask the sound of the executions. The Frankfurt resident charged Friday “contributed in his role as a perimeter guard and as a tower guard, and thus knowingly and deliberately aided” the killings, prosecutors said. — Compiled from AP reports
Today is Saturday, Oct. 21, the 294th day of 2017. There are 71 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Oct. 21, 1917, members of the 1st Division of the U.S. Army training in Luneville (luhn-nay-VEEL'), France, became the first Americans to see action on the front lines of World War I. On this date: In 1797, the U.S. Navy frigate Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides," was christened in Boston's harbor. In 1805, a British fleet commanded by Adm. Horatio Nelson defeated a French-Spanish fleet in the Battle of Trafalgar; Nelson, however, was killed. In 1892, schoolchildren across the U.S. observed Columbus Day by reciting, for the first time, the original version of "The Pledge of Allegiance," written by Francis Bellamy for The Youth's Companion. In 1917, legendary jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie was born in Cheraw, South Carolina. In 1941, superheroine Wonder Woman made her debut in All-Star Comics issue No. 8, published by All-American Comics, Inc. of New York. In 1942, the MGM musical "For Me and My Gal," starring Judy Garland and featuring the film debut of Gene Kelly, premiered in New York. In 1959, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, opened to the public in New York. In 1967, the Israeli destroyer INS Eilat was sunk by Egyptian missile boats near Port Said (sah-EED'); 47 Israeli crew members were lost. Tens of thousands of Vietnam War protesters began two days of demonstrations in Washington, D.C. In 1971, President Richard Nixon nominated Lewis F. Powell and William H. Rehnquist to the U.S. Supreme Court. (Both nominees were confirmed.) In 1986, pro-Iranian kidnappers in Lebanon abducted American Edward Tracy (he was released in Aug. 1991). In 1991, American hostage Jesse Turner was freed by his kidnappers in Lebanon after nearly five years in captivity. Ten years ago: Wildfires driven by powerful Santa Ana winds killed one person near San Diego and destroyed several homes and a church in Malibu. Vice President Dick Cheney said in a speech to The Washington Institute for Near East Policy that the United States and other nations would not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon. The Boston Red Sox won the American League championship in Game 7 of their series with the Cleveland Indians, 11-2. Five years ago: Five years ago: Former senator and 1972 Democratic presidential candidate George McGovern, 90, died in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. A Wisconsin man opened fire at the Brookfield spa where his wife worked, killing her and two others and wounding four other women before turning the gun on himself. The San Francisco Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-1 in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series, forcing a final deciding game. Garth Brooks was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame along with trailblazing singer Connie Smith and keyboard player Hargus "Pig" Robbins. One year ago: Cyberattacks on server farms of a key internet firm repeatedly disrupted access to major websites and online services including Twitter, Netflix and PayPal across the United States. The United Nations celebrated Wonder Woman's 75th birthday by naming the comic book character as its new Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Woman and Girls, a decision that prompted protests from both inside and outside the world organization (the designation was rescinded in Dec. 2016). Today's Birthdays: Actress Joyce Randolph is 93. Author Ursula K. Le Guin is 88. Rock singer Manfred Mann is 77. Musician Steve Cropper (Booker T. & the MG's) is 76. Singer Elvin Bishop is 75. TV's Judge Judy Sheindlin is 75. Actor Everett McGill is 72. Musician Lee Loughnane (Chicago) is 71. Actor Dick Christie is 69. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is 68. Actress LaTanya Richardson Jackson is 68. Musician Charlotte Caffey (The Go-Go's) is 64. Movie director Catherine Hardwicke is 62. Singer Julian Cope is 60. Actor Jeremy Miller is 41. Country singer Matthew Ramsey (Old Dominion) is 40. Actor Will Estes is 39. Actor Michael McMillian is 39. Reality TV star Kim Kardashian West is 37. Actor Matt Dallas is 35. Actress Charlotte Sullivan is 34. Actor Aaron Tveit is 34. Actor Glenn Powell is 29. Country singer Kane Brown is 24. Thought for Today: "A man is what he thinks about all day long." — Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, poet and philosopher (1803-1882).
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 15 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 22 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 29 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25.
AROUND TEXAS Mexico says SB4 affects nationals negatively NEW ORELANS — Mexico says a Texas law aimed at escalating a crackdown on undocumented immigrants is creating “fear, panic, and uncertainty” among Mexican nationals legally living in the border state and is even scaring off tourists and business travelers. The measure enacted this year by the state’s Republican
CONTACT US leadership, which lets law enforcement officials inquire about immigration status during routine encounters, deterred some Mexican nationals from seeking emergency assistance during Hurricane Harvey, the Mexican government said in a filing to an appeals court weighing whether to block the law. SB 4, as the law is known, will also hinder U.S.-Mexico trade and discourage international students from attending Texas universities, according to
the filing. “The possibility that thousands of previously work-authorized Mexican nationals who study, work and reside in Texas are now under threat of removal (and irreparable harm) upon any interaction with a Texas law enforcement official has engendered unprecedented levels of anxiety in the Mexican community,” Mexico told the New Orleans-based appeals court. — Compiled from AP reports
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THE ZAPATA TIMES | Saturday, October 21, 2017 |
A3
STATE
Wheels of justice in Texas slowed down by damage from Harvey By Juan A. Lozano A S S O CIAT E D PRE SS
HOUSTON — Damaged courtrooms. Delays in trials. Backlog of cases. A lack of jurors. Hurricane Harvey’s winds and cataclysmic rainfall have slowed criminal cases in Houston and other Texas communities where heavily damaged courthouses forced officials to move court proceedings into whatever space was available, including shuttered shorefronts and even a cafeteria. Defense attorneys and prosecutors are worried what that could mean for victims and for jailed defendants waiting for their day in court. In Houston, the nation’s third largest city, there are 40,000 such cases pending at any one time. “It is a challenge in a hurricane-ravaged, ground zero place to find a building still standing and available to be able to hold court,” said Pam Heard, the district clerk in Aransas County, a Gulf Coast community where Harvey made landfall as a Category 4 storm on Aug. 25 about 180 miles (290 kilometers) southwest of Houston. The storm displaced thousands of residents and destroyed more than a third of the county’s buildings, including its courthouse, which could take two years to rebuild.
Until then, a soon-to-berefurbished hardware store will have to do. In Harris County, home to Houston and Texas’ busiest court system, Harvey’s torrential rains flooded the 20-story criminal courthouse’s basement and caused water damage on the upper floors. The damage forced nearly 40 felony and misdemeanor courts to relocate to three different buildings — and it could be up to a year before the courthouse reopens. The result so far: Criminal jury trials delayed by nearly two months, cramped working conditions for hundreds of employees, including judges sharing courtrooms, and courts relocated to buildings that are too small or not designed to hear criminal cases. The Harris County District Attorney’s Office had to relocate its 700 employees from the courthouse to 10 different sites in the county. “We’re just having to make the best of it, make adjustments when we see things aren’t working,” said Susan Brown, the administrative judge of Harris County’s criminal district courts. Officials have tried to manage the influx of people at temporary courtroom locations by having fewer court dockets per week and scheduling these court hearings
in the morning and afternoon. Normally, dockets are only held in the morning, she said. Misdemeanor jury trials resumed this week after a temporary jury assembly area was set up in a county building’s cafeteria. Jury trials in felony cases were to resume Monday, but there will only be two courtrooms available to try cases with defendants in custody instead of the nearly 40 that could be normally used, Brown said. The lack of jury trials for two months in the nation’s third most-populous county is “a big deal,” said Houston defense attorney Julio Vela. “We’re all kind of waiting and watching to see if there is any delayed justice,” Vela said. After Harvey hit, the Texas Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals issued a joint order asking all courts in the state to temporarily suspend all deadlines and procedures in criminal and civil cases. The order is in place through Wednesday. Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said her office is aware of the concerns and has taken proactive measures, including dismissing several hundred low-level cases and, in certain types of cases where the threat to the public in minimal, agreeing to
personal recognizance bonds that allow defendants to not pay bonds in exchange for a promise to appear in court. In Orange County, about 110 miles east of Houston near the TexasLouisiana border, jury trials remain on hold after its courthouse was damaged, forcing courtrooms to be relocated to different buildings. If repairs take a long time, officials will look at finding a temporary building so jury trials can resume, according to Orange County Judge Stephen Carlton. In Aransas County, Heard said she doesn’t know if enough people will show up once jury duty resumes in January because so many people were displaced by the storm. Longtime local attorney Terry Collins said it could take years before the county and its legal system get back to normal. Collins is currently living in an RV with his wife in front of his law office after their home was destroyed by Harvey. Heard, the local court clerk, said judges are aware of these concerns and are hearing motions from defendants in custody about reducing bonds or granting personal recognizance bonds so they can be free while waiting for their cases to be resolved.
Texas town makes hurricane aid applicants pledge not to boycott Israel Kyle Swenson WA S H INGT ON P O ST
Nearly two months after Hurricane Harvey socked the Texas coastline, residents are still in the early stages of the costly and complicated cleanup process. Now in one Houston suburb, residents hoping to receive aid to help relaunch their lives have to factor Middle East political tensions into their recovery efforts. The city of Dickinson, Texas, located about 30 miles southeast of Houston, recently posted applications online for relief grants “from the funds that were generously donated to the Dickinson Harvey Relief Fund,” the city’s website says. The application, however, includes a provision requiring applicants to promise not to boycott Israel. The text reads: “By executing this Agreement below, the Applicant verifies that the Applicant: (1) does not boycott Israel; and (2) will not boycott
Israel during the term of this Agreement.” The city attorney for Dickinson told a local television station he was only following a state law forbidding state agencies from doing business with Israel boycotters. The aid grant application has triggered a strong rebuke from the American Civil Liberties Union. “The First Amendment protects Americans’ right to boycott, and the government cannot condition hurricane relief or any other public benefit on a commitment to refrain from protected political expression,” Andre Segura, ACLU of Texas Legal Director, said in a statement Thursday night. “Dickinson’s requirement is an egregious violation of the First Amendment, reminiscent of McCarthy-era loyalty oaths requiring Americans to disavow membership in the Communist Party and other forms of ‘subversive’ activity.” The language is not out of nowhere.
In May, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed the AntiBDS (Boycott, Divestments, and Sanctions) bill into law. The statute “prohibits all state agencies from contracting with, and certain public funds from investing in, companies that boycott Israel,” according to the governor’s website. “Anti-Israel policies are anti-Texas,” Abbott said at the bill’s signing. “We will not tolerate such actions against an important ally.” The BDS movement started in 2005 as a nonviolent protest the country’s treatment of Palestinians. It involved a call to halt business with Israeli companies, as well as corporations doing business with Israel, as a way to put pressure on the Israeli government. But as the ACLU pointed out in the organization’s release on the Dickinson application, “The Supreme Court ruled decades ago that political boycotts are protected by the First Amendment, and
other decisions have established that the government may not require individuals to sign a certification regarding their political expression in order to obtain employment, contracts, or other benefits.” In an interview with ABC 13, Dickinson’s city attorney David W. Olson said the city planned to follow the law and keep the provision in place until told to do otherwise.
Brian Blanco / Getty Images
Self-described white nationalist Tyler Tenbrink, of Houston, Texas, left, and friend William Fears, speak to members of the media as demonstrators gather near the site of a planned speech by Richard Spencer, who popularized the term 'alt-right', at the University of Florida campus.
3 arrested after shooting following white nationalist speech By Jason Dearen ASSOCIATED PRE SS
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — A man who fired a shot at anti-Nazi protesters following a speech at the University of Florida by a white nationalist has been charged with attempted murder, police in Gainesville said Friday. Two men who allegedly urged him to shoot face the same charge. A Gainesville Police Department report released on Friday said that Tyler Tenbrink, 28; William Fears, 30; and his brother, 28-year-old Colton Fears, all from Texas, were arrested on attempted homicide charges following an appearance on campus by white nationalist Richard Spencer. Hours before the shooting, all three men had spoken with the media in support of Spencer’s speech and white nationalism. The three were in a vehicle Thursday immediately after Spencer’s speech and began making Nazi salutes and shouting Hitler chants at a group of people holding anti-Nazi signs near a bus stop, Gainesville
Police Officer Ben Tobias said. One person in the group of about six people struck the back window of the men’s vehicle with a baton, police said. Tenbrink, a convicted felon, showed a handgun after exiting the car while the Fears brothers encouraged him to shoot, police said. “Colton Fears and William Fears were also yelling, ‘Kill them’ and ‘Shoot them,”’ the police report stated. Tenbrink fired a single shot, police said, missing the group and striking a nearby building. He is also being charged as a felon in possession of a firearm, police said. The men fled the scene and headed north on Highway 75, police said. Just before 9 p.m. an off-duty Alachua County Sheriff ’s deputy who had worked the Spencer event earlier saw the men’s vehicle. A group of officers called in stopped the vehicle and took the men into custody. Tenbrink admitted that he was the shooter, according to the police report. Police say two of the three have connections to “extremist groups.”
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A4 | Saturday, October 21, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
COLUMN
OTHER VIEWS
Why you don’t know anybody in the armed forces By Justin Fox B L OOM BE RG NEWS
There were a lot of complicated things going on in White House Chief of Staff John Kelly’s statement Thursday about the combat deaths of servicemen and women and how the nation (and his boss) responds to them. But along the way he made one very simple assertion: Most of you, as Americans, don’t know them. Many of you don’t know anyone who knows any one of them. That sounds ... about right. Active-duty military now make up just 0.4 percent of the U.S. population, down from 1.8 percent in 1968 and 8.7 percent in 1945. Military personnel also tend to come from certain parts of the country more than others. Here, from the Defense Department’s most recent annual report on population representation in the military services, are the states with the most military recruits in fiscal year 2015 as a percentage of the population aged 18 through 24: Southern states are very well represented here! Also, all these states but Colorado and Virginia have a lower percentage of college graduates than the national average -- when college isn’t seen as a realistic option, enlisting in the military becomes more attractive. Now, for the states with the lowest enlistment rates: Northeastern states are very well represented here! Also, with the exception of North Dakota and Pennsylvania, these are all states where the percentage of college graduates is above the national average. The District of Columbia has the country’s highest percentage of residents 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree -54.6 percent from 2011 through 2015, compared with a national average of 29.8 percent. So yes, there is something to the notion (which I’m pretty sure I read between the lines in Kelly’s remarks) that the Northeastern elite and today’s military operate in separate universes. When it comes to veterans, the data doesn’t fit the stereotypes quite as well. I’ve chosen to look at only veterans from the first Gulf War onward, because their service is more recent and also because none of them were drafted. Here’s where you’re most likely to bump into one: Veterans really like Alaska! Include pre-1990 veterans, and they make up 12.2 percent of the state’s 18-and-older population. As one Vietnam War vet told the Los Angeles Times in 2006, “You come to get away from everything, especially if you’ve seen stuff you don’t
want to remember.” Colorado, Hawaii, Montana and Wyoming presumably exert similar attractions. And Virginia is of course where the U.S. military is headquartered, while Maryland is next door. Overall I think these numbers do support the contention that many Americans, especially those in the Northeast, are unlikely to know people in the military. This would seem to be a product of: It is interesting to contemplate, though, exactly what that last shift has meant. Economist Milton Friedman, an outspoken opponent of the military draft and a member of the presidential commission that recommended its abolition, said in 1966 that: A by-product of freedom to serve would be avoidance of the present arbitrary discrimination among different groups. A large faction of the poor are rejected on physical or mental grounds. The relatively well-to-do used to be in an especially good position to take advantage of the possibilities of deferment offered by continuing their schooling. Hence the draft bears disproportionately on the upper lower classes and the lower middle classes. The fraction of highschool graduates who serve is vastly higher than of either those who have gone to college or those who dropped out before finishing high school. For the civilian population, each of these bars would be of equal size: Military recruitment apparently also draws “disproportionately on the upper lower classes and the lower middle classes.” Veterans, meanwhile, are much less likely not to have graduated from high school than nonveterans, but also somewhat less likely to have graduated from college. They are also half as likely to be below the poverty line as nonveterans, and their median income is 42 percent higher. The U.S. military takes in people from the broad middle of the income spectrum, and discharges them into the upper half. Going to an all-volunteer military has probably resulted in more of a geographic skew in military ranks than existed before, as peer effects drive young Southerners to recruiting offices and keep Northeasterners away. There is similarly something of a racial and ethnic skew: Blacks enlist in higher numbers than their share of the population, whites and Hispanics in lower numbers. Maybe that is what makes it seem so foreign to many Americans. Justin Fox is a Bloomberg View columnist. He was the editorial director of Harvard Business Review.
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How do you get rid of Trump? An election, not the 25th Amendment Jonathan Turley WASHINGTON P O ST
It appears that just as impeachment fever had started to break around the country, a 25th Amendment bug started going around. A few weeks ago, the University of Chicago’s Eric Posner argued that the “conventional understanding” of the amendment should be “enlarged” to include instances where both parties “lose confidence in the president’s ability to govern.” A Los Angeles Times reader asked, in a letter to the editor, “Why have a 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution if we refuse to use it” when “President [Donald] Trump wrecks everything in his path?” The chatter is loud enough that, reportedly, Trump-whisperer Steve Bannon privately warned the president that opponents might try to use the 25th Amendment as a way to oust him. Trump reportedly asked him, “what’s that?” He’s not the only one looking up the amendment, but if, as I’ve argued, impeachment would be a mistake, removing Trump via the 25th Amendment would be a disaster for our system. For Trump’s agonists, there’s an obvious solution; one they seem intent on avoiding: If you can’t stand the president, then the proper fix is electing someone else. Sandwiched between the prohibition against poll taxes and right to vote for 18-year-olds, the amendment detailing presidential succession fills a gap in the original Constitution. Until 1967, there was far greater uncertainty over the question of when and under what circumstances a president
could be succeeded in office. The issue of “disability” of a president “and who is to be the judge of it?” was raised in the Constitutional Convention in 1787 by Delegate John Dickinson of Delaware, but left unanswered. The first presidential succession ambiguity arose when President William Henry Harrison died a few weeks after taking office and former Vice President John Tyler struggled to be seen by critics as the appropriate successor — throughout his presidency, critics referred to Tyler as “His Accidency.” Members of Congress pondered the succession question after President Dwight D. Eisenhower suffered a stroke. They ultimately, if not exhaustively, dealt with the issue via the 25th Amendment after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. There was finally a sense of urgency as members realized that, had Kennedy lived on, incapacitated, it was not clear that Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson could assume office. What entices Trump critics now, however, aren’t the amendment’s provisions in Section 1 and 2 for the orderly succession of power “In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation.” Nor is it Section 3, which allows for temporary transfer of presidential authority when the president “transmits” his own “declaration” of temporary disability (as when George W. Bush underwent a “routine colon examination” and invoked the amendment to allow his vice Dick Cheney to briefly take over). Rather, it is Section 4’s provision for a less orderly, and perma-
nent, removal from power. This prospect has been floated by those who acknowledge that impeachment in the House of Representatives is highly unlikely without a clear “high crime” or “misdemeanor” — not to mention a two-thirds majority needed for conviction in the Senate. Impeachment, though, is a constitutional cake walk in comparison to a Section 4 removal. Section 4 has, essentially, two avenues for dragging a president from the Oval Office. First, there is the mutiny option. A vice president and a majority of the Cabinet can agree that the president is “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office” and notify Congress that the vice president intends to take over. If Vice President Pence could get eight Cabinet officers to sign a letter to that effect, he would immediately become the “Acting President.” But if the president then declares to Congress that “no inability exists,” Trump could resume his powers. Pence and the rebellious Cabinet would then have to send another declaration within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House that says, more or less, don’t believe a word, he’s unfit. Once Congress had the second declaration, if not already in session, it would have 48 hours to assemble to debate the issue. It would then have 21 days to vote on the president’s fitness. To remove the president, two-thirds of both houses would have to agree. If Congress did not vote within 21 days, the president would get his power back. Impeachment only requires a majority vote in the House and doesn’t
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DOONESBURY | GARRY TRUDEAU
need the cooperation of the vice president in addition to a two-house, twothirds vote. In a climate where members of Congress struggle to cobble together a simple majority on replacing Obamacare, a supermajority to remove Trump seems a tad optimistic, and politically risky: Cabinet members would do well to remember Emerson’s adage, “Never strike a king unless you are sure you shall kill him.” With a president made famous by the catchphrase “you’re fired,” there’s not much doubt as to one’s political future if you sign a Section 4 declaration and fail. Which brings us to option two. Section 4 states that a decision to remove the president could be made, alternatively, by “such other body as Congress may by law provide.” This is the course Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., has sought with proposed legislation to create an “Oversight Commission on Presidential Capacity”-a body to decide if the president is physically and mentally fit. More importantly, any disability review commission would be tasked with finding a mental or physical disability — unlikely. A group of self-declared “mental health professionals and members of the public” called Duty to Warn recently marched to call for a 25th Amendment removal on the supposition that Trump has an incurable malignant narcissism and “is too seriously mentally ill to competently discharge his duties as the president.” Narcissistic Personality Disorder is defined as “grandiosity, a lack of empathy for other people, and a need for admiration,” which, indeed, describes Trump.
Zfrontera THE ZAPATA TIMES | Saturday, October 21, 2017 |
RIBEREÑA EN BREVE ASUETO ESCOLAR 1 El distrito escolar Zapata County Independent School District recuerda a los estudiantes y padres de familia que el lunes 23 de octubre no habrá clases. Las clases se reanudarán el martes en todos los campus. AYUDA PARA VIVIENDA 1 La Ciudad de Roma ha anunciado que recibió una subvención para compra de viviendas y remodelación de casas. Las solicitudes se reciben desde el 16 de octubre hasta el viernes 27 de octubre, de 8 a.m. a 12 p.m. y de 1:30 p.m. a 4:30 p.m. en 301 Lincoln Street en Roma. Se dará preferencia a adultos mayores y personas con dispcapacidad. Mayores informes con Josie Hinojosa al 956-849-1411 x2230. TORNEO DE PESCA 1 Torneo de pesca Joe’s Big Gar en el Lago Falcón, el sábado 28 de octubre. El torneo inicia a las 8 a.m. y termina las 4 p.m. Premios para los ganadores del primer, segundo y tercer lugar. Las inscripciones inicial el viernes 27 en Do It Best Store de Roma, de 5 p.m. a 7 p.m. Cuota de entrada de 30 dólares. CAMINATA CONTRA CÁNCER 1 Walk All Over Cancer! en su cuarta caminata anual. Inscripciones en el Ayuntamiento llamando al 956-8491411 x 9241 o en el 956-844-1428. Caminata iniciará en Citizens State Bank o en el Centro Comuniario de Roma el sábado 21 de octubre. CONSULADO MÓVIL 1 El Consulado móvil de salud visitará Zapata el 28 de octubre. Las personas con algún problema de salud pueden asistir para ser referidos con aliados que puedan ayudarlos. Se estarán emitiendo servicios de documentación como pasaportes mexicanos y matricula consular.
A5
OFICINA DE ALCOHOL, TABACO, ARMAS DE FUEGO Y EXPLOSIVOS
Pareja recibe sentencia Se les acusa de poseer armas TIEMP O DE ZAPATA
Una hombre de 43 años de edad y su concubina han sido sentenciados a prisión federal después de haber sido encontrados culpables de poseer armas, anunció el fiscal Abe Martínez. Jesús José de Jesús y Amira Elizabeth Sáenz, de 35 años, se declararon culpables del cargo el 21 de marzo de 2017. La Juez de Distrito
Diana Saldaña ordenó a De Jesús a pasar 46 meses en prisión, mientras que Sáenz recibió un término de seis meses de prisión además de seis meses adicionales de confinamiento en el hogar por la revocación de una liberación supervisada previa. Después de completar sus sentencias, ambos cumplirán tres años de libertad condicional. De Jesús ha sido en-
contrado culpable como ofensor sexual y es un criminal convicto en repetidas ocasiones. Sáenz ha sido encontrada culpable de cargos por drogas. Por tal razón, a ambos se les prohíbe poseer armas por ley federal. El 27 de octubre de 2015, oficiales de las fuerzas del orden estaban realizando revisiones a ofensores sexuales en el Condado de Zapata, fue cuando encontraron cuatro armas de fuego en el interior de una casa trailer ubicada
en la cuadra 3400 de Zapata Highway 83 en Zapata. Al día siguiente, los agentes recuperaron las cuatro armas localizadas en la recámara que la pareja compartía. Las armas incluían un rifle calibre .308, un rifle calibre 22, un rile de 7 milímetros y una escopeta calibre .410. A Sáenz se le permitió salir libre bajo fianza y voluntariamente entregarse a una instalación de la Oficina de Prisiones de EU, que se determina-
MUSEO DE HISTORIA DEL CONDADO DE ZAPATA
rá en el futuro cercano. De Jesús permanecerá bajo custodia hasta que se le transfiera a la oficina de la Oficina de Prisiones, que se determinará en un futuro cercano. La Oficina de Alcohol, Tabaco, Armas de Fuego y Explosivos condujo la investigación con la asistencia del Departamento de Seguridad Pública de Texas. Los Fiscales Federales Auxiliares José Homero Ramírez y José Ángel Flores Jr. procesaron el caso.
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CONSTRUYEN RÉPLICA Detalles ocultos de tratado bilateral
Nuevo kiosco es similar al que existió en el viejo Zapata Por Malena Charur TIEMP O DE ZAPATA
Desde el sábado, la plaza John “Johnny” Rathmell cuenta con la réplica de un elemento que fue parte integral en la vida de los habitantes del viejo Zapata. Fue dentro de las actividades del festival Nuevo Santander Days Festival, llevado a cabo el pasado fin de semana, cuando se cristalizó la dedicatoria del nuevo kiosco dentro de la Plaza John “Johnny” Rathmell Plaza. El kiosco es una réplica del kiosco de la plaza del viejo Zapata. Hace más de 60 años, el pueblo de Zapata quedó bajo el agua con la creación de la Presa y Lago Falcón. Más de 600 familias fueran desplazadas y casi todos los edificios
públicos fueron destruidos, se lee en el sitio de Internet del Museo de Historia del Condado de Zapata. “Algo que produce nostalgia es el kiosko que se erigía frente a la Corte del Condado. Muchos recuerdos se ligan a él: desde niños corriendo subiendo y bajando las esclaeras; las bandas que tocaba los domingos por la tardea hasta las propuestas matrimoniales que fueron el inicio de prominentes familias en la comuidad”, se lee en el sitio. La construcción del kiosco estuvo a cargo de Premier Engineering de Laredo que recibió el encargo de recrear tanto como fuera posible la estructura original de acuerdo a las fotografías existentes.
Por Raúl Sinencio Chávez TIEMP O DE ZAPATA
Foto de cortesía / Museo de Historia del Condado de Zapata
Una réplica del kiosco que se ubicaba frente a la Corte del Condado del viejo Zapata ha sido inaugurada en la Plaza John “Johnny” Rathmell, el sábado dentro del festival Nuevo Santander.
“Muchos recordarán los muchos momentos felicies que tuvieron cuando lo vean terminado”, dijo Amparo Montes-Gutiérrez, curadora del museo. Durante el evento, el juez del Condado de Zapata Joe Rathmell, así como el director del Museo de
Historia del Condado de Zapata Hildegardo Flores dirigieron unas palabras al público. También se contó con la participación de los estudiantes de la preparatoria Zapata High School que pertenecen al Junior Reserve Officer Training Course (JROTC).
Miguel Alemán celebra 67 aniversario
PAGO DE IMPUESTOS 1 Los pagos por impuestos a la propiedad de la Ciudad de Roma deberán realizarse en la oficina de impuestos del Distrito Escolar de Roma. Foto de cortesía / Gobierno de Miguel Aleán
La alcaldesa de Miguel Alemán, Rossy Corro, encabeza una cabalgata organizada para celebrar el aniversario 67 de la fundación de la ciudad. En el evento participaron más de 150 jinetes, con un recorrido de 13 kilómetros desde el poblado Guardados de Arriba hasta las instalaciones de la Expo Fiesta 2017.
Mucho le critican a don Benito Juárez el Tratado McLane-Ocampo. Severos cargos suelen lanzársele por ello. Enmarcadas por la Guerra de Reforma, desarrollan las conferencias necesarias Robert Milligan McLane y Melchor Ocampo. Aquél ministro plenipotenciario de la Unión Americana y canciller mexicano éste, sus apellidos identifican el convenio. Lo suscriben en Veracruz, el 14 de diciembre de 1859. Buen tramo del año abarcan las pláticas bilaterales. Escrita por Ocampo, la versión definitiva queda lista cerca del invierno. El texto desata a posteriori agrias polémicas. Las concentran tres pasos francos que el Tío Sam iba a tener, bajo determinadas condiciones: por el istmo de Tehuantepec, entre las riberas tamaulipecas del río Bravo y Mazatlán, así como de Guaymas hasta Nogales. No obstante lo que tiende a creerse, ni don Benito ni Ocampo idean tales ofrecimientos. Todo proviene de acuerdos establecidos tiempo atrás por las naciones limítrofes. El agente diplomático enviado por James Buchanans lo firma a regañadientes.
A6 | Saturday, October 21, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
FROM THE COVER
Mexico jumps into battle over Texas ‘sanctuary city’ law By Franco Ordonez M CCLATCHY WASHINGT ON BUR EAU
WASHINGTON - The government of Mexico has aligned itself with municipalities suing the state of Texas over a new law that, if implemented, would crack down on sanctuary cities, arguing that the state’s action hurts Mexico’s relationship with Washington. Lawyers for the Mexican government argue that Texas Senate Bill 4 creates unnecessary tension in relations between Mexico and the United States. It forces Mexico to treat Texas differently than other states and interferes with diplomatic interests and ongoing negotiations on a range of bilateral matters, from trade to security. "Given the importance of the international relationship between the U.S. and Mexico, it is essential that Mexico be able to approach its discussions with one consistent negotiating partner rather than having to enter into 50 different negotiations with each state regarding the type and extent of immigration enforcement that will occur in that
WALL From page A1 feet (5.5 and 9.1 meters) high and be able to withstand at least an hour of punishment from a sledgehammer, pickaxe, torch, chisel or batteryoperated tools. Features also should prevent the use of climbing aids such as grappling hooks, and the segments must be “aesthetically pleasing” when viewed from the U.S. side. The administration hasn’t said how many winners it will pick or whether Trump will weigh in himself. There is currently 654 miles (1,052 kilometers) of single-layer fence on the 1,954-mile (3,143-kilometer) border, plus 51 miles (82 kilometers) of double- and triple-layer fence. “I’m sure they will engage in a lot of tests
state," the Mexican government writes in an amicus brief filed late Thursday night. In August, a federal judge in San Antonio temporarily halted the implementation of the state law that punishes officials who don’t honor requests by immigration authorities to detain people suspected of being in the country illegally. But the state appealed and, last month, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans allowed Texas officials to implement part of the law while awaiting a full hearing on the appeal in November. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed the law in May. It would prevent municipalities from adopting their own policies to limit enforcement of immigration laws and empowers police officers to question people about their immigration status when they are detained. Civil rights activists in Texas and around the country say the law will promote racial profiling. Some call it the "show your papers" law. Mexico is the third largest U.S. trading partner and a crucial ally in a wide range of security,
migration and trade issues. The two sides are currently in heated trade negotiations over NAFTA, the trade agreement that Trump has threatened to exit if the United States, Mexico and Canada can’t work out a better deal for the United States. The Mexican government says the Texas law will only make it harder to reach an agreement on this and other diplomatic matters between the two countries. Leon Fresco, a lawyer representing the government of Mexico, argues in the brief that SB-4 has already harmed the relationship between Mexico and the United States. Mexican consulate officials in Texas have been flooded with calls from scared Mexican nationals. Fears are so widespread that Mexican nationals were afraid to seek government assistance during Hurricane Harvey. "The reason immigration law is meant to be federal is because when 50 states pass 50 different laws, this negatively impacts foreign policy in ways that the federal government is unable to control," Fresco said when reached by phone.
against these structures to see how they function with different challenges,” U.S. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, a Virginia Republican who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, said Tuesday after touring the construction site. Trump has asked Congress for $1.6 billion to replace 14 miles of wall (22.4 kilometers) in San Diego and build 60 miles (96 kilometers) in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley, the busiest corridor for illegal crossings. Here’s a rundown of companies building prototypes, their headquarters and value of their contract. Two are making one concrete prototype and another using other materials. Its tan concrete wall is thick at the bottom and narrows considerably toward the pointed top. The other, also tan, has
metal poles on the bottom, a metal plate in the middle, and concrete block on top. The general construction company founded in 1983 says its projects include U.S. embassies in Beijing and Kabul, Afghanistan, terminals at Houston’s George Bush International Airport and renovations to the Denver Mint. Its models are a darker brown than other prototypes and topped by round beams. Its concrete panel has a plain face; its metal one has a corrugated surface. The 53-year-old company has worked in a wide range of projects, including a Toyota plant in Blue Springs, Mississippi, a county jail in Olmito, Texas, a marine terminal in Jacksonville, Florida, and a power plant near Panama City, Florida.
facility to be determined in the near future. De Jesus will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Texas Department of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorneys José Homero Ramirez and José Angel Flores Jr. prosecuted the case.
ALAMO From page A1 Hundreds of protesters showed up at the Alamo last weekend, some wearing colonial costumes and holding signs reading “Leave the Alamo Alone.” The ruling Republican Party of Texas was so concerned that its executive committee voted 57-1 in September to urge Bush to keep the focus of the overhaul on the battle itself and calling for more transparency in how the effort is funded. “This isn’t just some memory that’s popular in movies, these were living, breathing people,” said Lee Spencer White, a descendant of Gordon C. Jennings, who at 56 was the oldest defender killed at the Alamo. “The Alamo’s personal.” The criticism from fellow Republicans has put the latest political star of the Bush family on the defensive. The 41-year-old son of former Florida governor and presidential candidate Jeb and Mexican-born mother Columba, Bush has used funds for his re-election bid next year on a website and radio ads defending he restoration. “My focus isn’t on the politics, it’s on preserving the Alamo,” Bush said via email. “I’m focused on telling the story of the heroic battle for freedom — proudly, purposefully and better than ever before.” Bush’s critics say his Hispanic heritage isn’t an issue, noting that many Tejanos — Texans of Hispanic descent — played prominent roles during the Battle of the Alamo. They included Gregorio Esparza, who was given the chance to flee beforehand but stayed and was killed in battle. Still, during the Cenotaph protest, one demonstrator bellowed:
“Vote George P. Santa Anna Bush out of office” to applause. During the war of independence from Mexico, Texas forces occupied the Alamo, which had been founded by Spaniards as a Franciscan mission in 1718 but was relocated to its current spot, now in in the heart of San Antonio, America’s seventh-largest city, in 1724. Though vastly outnumbered by Mexican soldiers, the defenders held out during a 13-day siege before being overrun on March 6, 1836. Their bravery became a rallying cry and Texas won independence the following month, then became part of the United States nine years later. Supporters of the Alamo revamp emphasize that there is good reason to upgrade the site visited by 2.5-plus million people a year. The existing shrine is small and offers relatively little to see. Nearby is what some have called a “carnival” atmosphere, with Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, and other buildings that are being bought up in the renovation. Bush’s office is working with a Philadelphia-based historic preservation and architecture firm with the goal of presenting the Alamo’s full history. The site’s public space would expand from around two acres to 9.5 acres, though public outcry already halted a proposal to build glass walls around the entire area. Santa Anna ordered the original walls around the Alamo torn down after the battle, but remnants remain underground and plans are to excavate and possibly place them under glass for visitors to view. Pop icon Phil Collins, who spent decades collecting Alamo artifacts, has begun donating most of them to Texas, including a leather pouch
belonging to slain defender Davey Crockett, as well as the knife of Jim Bowie, namesake of today’s fixed blade Bowie knife. The renovation project calls for the artifacts to be displayed in the new museum. Jerry Patterson, a Republican who was Bush’s predecessor as land commissioner, said the issue of slave owners among the Alamo independence fighters is sure to be raised. Alamo commander William Travis owned slaves and Bowie, his co-commander, traded them. “History’s full of warts,” Patterson said. “There are no men, icons of the past, that will stand up to modern scrutiny.” San Antonio has pledged $38 million for the revamp and the Texas Legislature has approved $106.5 million since 2015. The project’s total cost could reach $450 million, though much of that may be raised privately. State contracts suggest Bush’s office paid nearly $4.9 million on an Alamo renovation master plan, but Bush wouldn’t say exactly how much has been spent so far. Exactly what the new Alamo will look like also isn’t clear. Artists’ renderings were released previously, but Bush’s office says those weren’t official. Construction hasn’t started but is scheduled to finish by 2024, when the Alamo turns 300 at its current location. The controversy is lost on most Alamo tourists, including Sue and Dave Gay who visited recently from Rochester, New York. “You can’t change what it is,” said Sue Gay, a 50-year-old nurse, said of the current Alamo site. “Just because it’s small doesn’t make it any less significant.”
Congressman
Henry Cuellar Congressman Cuellar Is On The Job, Working ForYou In The 28th District : Federal Government Assistance
COUPLE From page A1 .410-caliber shotgun. Saenz was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons
TAMIU From page A1 ranked among the Top 20 Public Schools in the 2018 U.S. News and World Reports’ Best Colleges Ranking. Also, TAMIU rose four places in Washington Monthly’s national Top 10 ranking among Southern Colleges, from eighth place last year to fourth this year. “A new, independent study by The Equality of Opportunity Project also revealed that TAMIU ranks third in the nation among colleges with the highest upward income mobility rate,” Arenaz said, “This speaks to TAMIU’s ability to transform generations of lives and by extension, to better communities, states, regions and countries.” Further reinforcing the University’s destination status: students are coming to the campus from 59 Texas counties, 24 U.S. states and 32 foreign countries. Additional statistics on
the fall 2017 class include: The most popular undergraduate majors are Criminal Justice, Business Administration, Nursing and Biology. The most popular graduate programs are Business Administration, Educational Administration, Public Administration and School Counseling. Countries with the highest TAMIU student enrollment include México, India, Nepal and China. Among foreign countries represented are Albania, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, South Korea, México, Mongolia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Venezuela and Zimbabwe. States with the highest student enrollment at TAMIU other than Texas include California, New York, Arizona and others
(Maryland, Nevada, Ohio and Virginia). Women bypassed men by 1,644 hours in enrollment by credit hour load. The six youngest students enrolled are all 13 years old. The oldest student enrolled is 66. The College of Arts and Sciences tops total enrollment by Colleges, followed by the A. R. Sanchez, Jr. School of Business, College of Education and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences. The College of Nursing and Health Sciences welcomed its largest class in its history this fall and spring with 120 students, a 20% increase over last year. This fall semester, TAMIU Nursing begins a two-time admission cycle, with 60 students admitted each semester. TAMIU offers more than 70 degree programs ranging from the liberal arts and business to nursing and education, among others. The student to faculty ratio is 19:1 and the female student population is 60%.
Grants and Federal funding for local projects Social Security and Medicare benefits Citizenship Services and Immigration status requests Veterans’ benefits Passport applications
Constituent Services
Group tours for school classes and community organizations American flags flown over the Capitol U.S. Military Academy nominations Student internships
Let Congressman Cuellar Hear Your Thoughts! 1(877) 780-0028 henry.cuellar@mail.house.gov www.house.gov/cuellar
Come Visit Us In Our Local Offices Laredo 602 E. Calton Road, Suite 2, Laredo, Texas 78041 Phone: (956) 725-0639 Fax: (956) 725-2647
Constituents seeking assistance from Congressman Cuellar’s office need to reside within the 28th District of Texas This document was prepared and published at taxpayer expense.
Sports&Outdoors THE ZAPATA TIMES | Saturday, October 21, 2017 |
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NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: DALLAS COWBOYS
Cowboys keep RB Elliott active Dallas to face 49ers rookie QB Beathard By Josh Dubow ASSOCIATED PRE SS
Ron Jenkins / Associated Press file
Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott will be back on the field again this week against San Francisco as his looming possible six-game suspension was once again delayed.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers are making a change at quarterback, hoping that rookie C.J. Beathard can provide a needed spark against Dallas for a team that has opened the season with six straight losses. The Cowboys feel fortunate they don’t need to make a change at running back now that Ezekiel Elliott’s six-game suspension over domestic violence allegations is on hold again after the star running back served a day of it waiting for another reprieve that eventually came. Elliott and the Cowboys will try to spoil Beathard’s starting debut when the Cowboys (2-3) visit the 49ers (0-6) on Sunday. “Any chance we get with him in the backfield, we’re going to take it,” quarterback Dak Prescott said. “We’ll just take it one week at a time and that’s kind of been the focus and I guess you can say the mindset with this team. If he’s playing, obviously we’re happy to have him ...” Elliott led the NFL in rushing as a rookie a year ago and has 393 yards through five games this season. He ran for 138 yards against the 49ers last season and the Cowboys are hoping for a
similar performance to help bounce back from consecutive losses before the bye. “He’s getting stronger as the year goes on,” Prescott said. “It’s going to be unfortunate when the suspension comes or however that plays out. But he’s definitely getting better each and every week. The benefit of having him out there is big.” Elliott was granted his second temporary restraining order, this one from a New York judge, on Tuesday night, clearing him to play this week and probably next week at Washington. What happens after that remains to be seen. The Niners are hoping Beathard will be there the rest of the season after a promising performance in relief of the ineffective Brian Hoyer in last week’s 26-24 loss at Washington . Beathard led San Francisco back from a 17-0 deficit and nearly pulled out the comeback. He now gets a chance to start. “I don’t think it’s too big for him,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “I think he’s used to having it and I think he’s just going to go about it like he’s gone about every other day throughout his career.” Here are some other things to watch: CLOSE CALLS The Cowboys are stewing over two straight tight
losses before the bye as a failed late drive led to a defeat against the Rams, and an inability to stop Aaron Rodgers down the stretch led to a loss to Green Bay . The 49ers have had it even worse, becoming the first team to lose five straight games by three or fewer points . San Francisco has been outscored by only 33 points this season, the best of any 0-6 team in NFL history. HELP ON DEFENSE Sean Lee returns after missing two games with a hamstring injury. The Cowboys need their AllPro linebacker. Dallas hasn’t forced a turnover in three full games and is tied for the second-fewest takeaways with four. With Anthony Hitchens set for his second game following a preseason knee injury, the Cowboys should be able to limit the snaps of Jaylon Smith. The former Notre Dame star missed all of his rookie season recovering from a college knee injury and has struggled in part because he’s had to play too much. DROPSIES Shanahan sent his receivers back to the JUGS machine this week to work on their hands. The 49ers lead the NFL with 22 dropped passes and Shanahan believes the issue is more psychological than talent oriented. “If you have good hands and you’re having drops,
it’s a huge mental thing,” he said. “It doesn’t get easier. The more you drop it, it gets harder to catch it because now you’re starting to think about stuff.” ANTHEM PROTESTS The 49ers and Cowboys have been perhaps the most prominent teams when it comes to protests during the national anthem. It started last year in San Francisco when quarterback Colin Kaepernick sat during the anthem in protest of police brutality and racial inequality. The topic became central earlier this season when President Donald Trump called on owners to fire anyone who didn’t stand for the anthem. That led to widespread protests, including the entire Dallas team and ownership kneeling before the anthem in Arizona , then standing at the start of the song. Owner Jerry Jones has threatened to punish players who knee in the future, while several 49ers have continued to kneel during the anthem. “Nothing will change on my part going forward until we have a more concrete plan and I feel like I don’t need to protest anymore because the NFL is providing a better platform,” said 49ers safety Eric Reid, who took part in meetings with owners earlier this week.
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: HOUSTON TEXANS
WATSON GIVING TEXANS HOPE Houston banking on rookie QB after another Watt injury By Kristie Rieken A S S O CIAT E D PRE SS
HOUSTON — Without J.J. Watt for the second straight season, a new star has emerged for the Houston Texans. Rookie Deshaun Watson has this team long known for its defense rolling on offense. Though the Texans are 3-3 entering their bye, the development of Watson has them encouraged that they’ve finally found the player to end their years of quarterback woes and help the franchise take the next step. Romeo Crennel, Houston’s 70-year-old assistant head coach who has worked in the NFL since 1981, says Watson has the “it factor.” “You can’t describe the ‘it factor.’ Guys who have it, they have it, and you just know it when you see it,” Crennel said. “But it’s hard to tell what it is. You take a guy like J.J. — J.J. has the ‘it factor’ and his it factor is different than Watson’s ‘it factor.’ But you know it when they got it and you see it.” Watson is emerging as the new face of this team that is looking to move on after Watt, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, broke his leg on Oct. 8. The Texans also spent most of last season without Watt; he missed the last 13 games after having
a second back surgery. They won their second straight AFC South title last season, but were eliminated by New England in the divisional round of the playoffs after a three-interception performance by Brock Osweiler. The Texans dealt Osweiler to Cleveland in March and traded up to take Watson with the 12th overall pick in this year’s draft after he led Clemson to a national championship. He started the year as Tom Savage’s backup, but took over at halftime of a seasonopening loss to Jacksonville after Savage struggled. Since then, Watson thrown for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns to give him the most touchdown passes by a rookie in the first six games in NFL history. Under his guidance the Texans have scored 30 or more points in four straight games for the first time in franchise history, highlighted by a 57-14 win over the Titans where they set a franchise mark for points. His performance is a welcome change for a team searching for a solution at quarterback for years, and has had nine players start behind center since 2013. The 22year-old is well aware of Houston’s longtime quarterback problems, but is
Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle
Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson has given the Texans hope even after losing defensive star J.J. Watt for the second consecutive year due to injury.
set on looking ahead and not concerning himself about what happened before he joined the team. “I just try to stay focused on my job and operation of this offense and do what I can really do, kind of control what I can control ... and learn as I grow each and every week,” he said. “But, as far as my impact, I know I have a lot of it, but honestly, I just try to do what I have to do to do my job.” Watson’s numbers are certainly impressive, but if you talk to coaches and players they’ll tell you his statistics only tell part of the story. The Texans love his attitude and the confidence he’s brought to this offense. “He has his own swag
to him. He just keeps everything fun,” receiver Will Fuller said. “That’s the biggest thing with football is just if you’re having fun I feel like you can play free. I feel like that’s what he does, too. He plays free and he makes plays.” Watson’s all about the fun, for sure. “The energy and the vibe that we bring on the field and the fun that we have,” he said. “I believe that it’s easy to kind of get in that place where it’s all about business and everyone’s kind of uptight and not having fun. But with this offense, we love to have fun and go out there and put up points and every time we step on the field.”
He also has a knack for extending plays with his legs and making ones that could lead a highlight reel. One such play came in Week 3 against the Patriots when he evaded four tackles before launching a 31-yard pass to D’Onta Foreman in the fourth quarter. Then there was the play he made against the Chiefs when Rakeem NunezRoches tried to strip the ball out of his hands as he scrambled away from the pass rush. Watson smoothly moved the ball from his right to left hand to keep it away from Nunez-Roches before switching it back to his right and launching it 48 yards for a touchdown to Fuller. Coach Bill O’Brien is
impressed by these plays, too. But he knows that Watson will have to continue to improve if the Texans hope to make their third straight playoff appearance. “He’s got a great instinct, he’s got good eyes, good vision, good feel,” O’Brien said. “He’s done a really good job for a 22year old guy, but ... it gets harder and harder. The more you put things on film, the more you have to adjust. If anybody can adjust and anybody can adapt, it’s him. Being around him for the time that I’ve been around him ... he’s very smart, very poised and he’s got a good instinct for the game.” In other words, the it factor.
A8 | Saturday, October 21, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
Mercedes-Benz of Laredo owners/representatives Jonathan Watson, Zachry Powell, Jonathan Watson Jr. and Deby Watson presented a check for $15,000 to Women’s City Club officers Elsa Miles and Alma Narvaez. The funds were raised at the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealership Championships Golf Tournament at the Laredo Country Club.
Minnie Silva and Melinda Dalton at the Laredo Country Club during the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealer Championship awards.
Nancy De Anda and Ruby Chapa at the Laredo Country Club during the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealer Championship awards.
Luis Martinez and Federico Nohra pose for a photo after winning the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealership Championships at the Laredo Country Club.
2017 MERCEDES-BENZ DEALER CHAMPIONSHIP
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he 6th annual 2017 MercedesBenz Dealer Championship (MBDC) was held at the Laredo Country Club on Sept. 9, 2017. The sponsored charity for this year is the Women’s City Club. MBDC is a nationwide amateuronly program for men and women, 21 years or older. The winning team of 2 players advanced on an all-expense paid trip to the prestigious Torrey Pines Golf Resort and Golf Course in La Jolla, California on October 1-5, 2017 for an unforgettable first class experience. Golf Winners: Federico Nohra and Luis Martinez will be representing Lar-
edo at the sectional tournament. “With the faithful financial contributions and support over the years, the Powell and Watson Families - Mercedes-Benz Dealership have demonstrated their deep commitment to the Laredo community. The Women’s City Club could not continue to prosper and achieve its mission of supporting many local charities and/or educational institutions at the same level without their support. Women’s City Club is thankful for their continued generosity and look forward to many more years of working together,” said Elsa Miles of the Women’s City Club.
Jonathan Watson, Deby Watson and Jonathan Watson Jr. at the Laredo Country Club during the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealer Championship awards.
Golfers were excited to have the opportunity to win a 2017 Mercedes Benz AMG C43 coupe and a 2017 Mercedes Benz CLA 250 coupe for a hole-in-one on 2 designated par 3’s. There were other hole contests as well. In addition, to the first place team winner of the trip to Torrey Pines, there were other trophies and gift certificates awarded to 2nd, 3rd and 4th place teams. Mercedes-Benz of Laredo has one of the largest Mercedes-Benz inventory mixes of luxury cars and SUVs across all of south Texas. Along with an array of Mercedes-Benz models, the facility
Irma Richter, Karran Westerman and Daniel Westerman at the Laredo Country Club during the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealer Championship awards.
also carries a wide range of certified pre-owned Mercedes-Benz vehicles to fully service Laredo and Webb County. Mercedes-Benz of Laredo is located at 6912 Bob Bullock Loop and serves the new and pre-owned automotive needs of greater Laredo, Webb County and south Texas. They can be reached at 956-721-4100 and their full inventory is available to view online at www. MBofLaredo.com as well as pre-qualify for financing or the scheduling of a test drive. Mercedes-Benz of Laredo is dedicated to customer satisfaction before, during and after the sale.
Edward Maddox and Greg Kahn at the Laredo Country Club during the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealer Championship awards.
Zachry Powell, Jonathan Watson Jr., and Federico Nohra at the check presentation to the Women’s City Club of funds raised at the 6th Annual Mercedes-Benz of Laredo Dealership Championships Golf Tournament att the Laredo Country Club. PAID ADVERTISEMENT