The El Paso Times reports,
Texas state inspectors in El Paso have found thousands of safety violations in trucks coming from Mexico, including bad brakes, flat tires, axle problems and defective lights, statistics show.
Between fiscal year 2007 and the first six months of 2011, the state conducted 1.2 million inspections at state facilities by the Bridge of Americas and the Zaragoza Bridge. The state fiscal year runs from Sept. 1 to Aug. 31.
During that period, officers found a million violations, and placed 31,519 trucks and 625 drivers out of service. Many trucks had multiple violations.A state representative claims Mexican trucks are no worse than American trucks. Really. The Times quotes Democratic Rep. Joe Pickett:
They are either no worse than U.S. trucks or better in some cases.R-i-i-i-ight.
Unfortunately, Pickett is exhibiting the same cluelessness about the dangers of Mexican trucks as the U.S. Department of Transportation, which wants to open the borders to them in a month or two.
The Teamsters will see about that.
