U.S. Senator John Cornyn attends Eagle Ford Shale Economic Summit
By: Jose G. Landa©
United States Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) attended an Eagle Ford Shale Economic Development Summit on Monday, July 2, 2012 hosted by the City of Eagle Pass, Maverick County Development Corporation and the Middle Rio Grande Development Council.
Cornyn stated that the Eagle Ford Shale is the most important economic development project in the State of Texas for business opportunities, job creation, and natural gas and oil production. Cornyn stated he will do everything possible to promote the Eagle Ford Shale economic development project.
Eagle Pass attorney Alfonso “Poncho” Nevarez raised a poignant question during the question and answer session regarding the protection of Texas’ water resources and its possible contamination by Eagle Ford Shale oil and gas drilling and the potential exhaustion of Texas’ potable water resources. These are very important concerns and questions among many Texans.
Unquestionably, the Eagle Ford Shale Economic Development Summit was a public meeting as it was held at the City of Eagle Pass International Center for Trade, the Mayor and certain City Council members were present, Maverick County Judge David Saucedo attended, Eagle Pass Independent School District Board Members attended, and many other elected public officials from Maverick, Dimmit, and Zavala counties attended.
Unfortunately, local public elected officials told the Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico news media that they were prohibited from attending the public meeting because it was closed and private. However, a hand-picked select local news-media was allowed to attend and take video and photographs of the event while the majority of news-media reporters were kept outside the public meeting. Not until the News-Media complained to Senator Cornyn’s staff were the News-Media allowed to come-in and report about the public meeting. Eagle Pass and Middle Rio Grande public elected and/or appointed officials need to learn that they cannot close a public meeting disguised as a private meeting again and invite only certain select news-media of their choosing to these events. The news-media has a First-Amendment constitutional right to report to the public the news without obstruction and filtration of the news. Next time read the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment which guarantees freedom of the press. Shame on those public officials who attempted to suppress the Freedom of the Press concerning Senator Cornyn’s visit to Eagle Pass.
