Biography

Name: Silvestre Reyes

Age: 63

Occupation: Member of Congress

Website: www.reyesforcongress.com

Residence: Upper Valley

Relevant Experience (for print, will be edited 100 words max): Congressman Silvestre Reyes was born and raised in Canutillo, TX. After serving his country in Vietnam, Reyes decided to commit his life to public service, beginning his 26 ½½ years of service in the U.S. Border Patrol in 1969. Rising to the position of chief, he became recognized as one of the government's strongest, most effective, and most innovative border policy leaders. Reyes was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996, becoming the first Hispanic to represent El Paso in Congress and a leader in Washington on immigration and border issues. Ten years later, when Democrats took back control of Congress, Reyes was appointed Chairman of the influential House Intelligence Committee. He is one of two Hispanic Members of Congress to chair full committees. Reyes has been married to his beautiful wife Carolina for 39 years. Together they have three children and four grandchildren. Note: Answers will be used for the printed Voters Guide as well as posted in their entirety online. The answers may be edited for clarity and brevity. For print, all candidates' answers will be edited to a similar length.

1. Do you consider immigration and border enforcement to be the same issue, or are they separate issues? Where do they intersect and where are they different, and give some specific proposals as to how you would address each. Border enforcement is just one part of a strategy to control illegal immigration. I firmly believe in comprehensive reform of our broken immigration laws, which must include a unified approach to border security with increased personnel and resources, earned legalization for those who qualify, and a guest worker program with strict employer sanctions. I am a proud supporter of the STRIVE Act, which incorporates all three elements into one strong bill.

2. Why do you believe the U.S. is in Iraq, how long do you think we will be there, and what are our options there?

I voted against giving the President the authority to go to war in Iraq. The war resulted from intelligence failures driven by policy failures. The war must be ended through the strategic redeployment of U.S. troops from Iraq. Military force will not bring about political reconciliation. The fate of the Iraqi people rests in their own hands.

3. Give three specific steps you would take to support economic stability for the majority of U.S. citizens.

In the short term, Congress should pass and the President should sign an economic stimulus package that drives our economy forward by putting money in the pockets of those who are going to spend it –– working and middle class Americans. In the medium term, we need to ensure America is economically competitive in a globalized economy. We do that by incentivizing entrepreneurial innovation, promoting the job-rich field of renewable energy, investing in research and development, and creating universal broadband internet access. In the long term, the best way to provide economic dignity and expanded prosperity for Americans is through education. In particular we must create an educated, skilled workforce in the vital fields of math, science, and engineering, and an essential component of achieving success in this area is encouraging groups currently under-represented in those fields, namely Hispanics, African-Americans and women, to join them.

4. Name specific areas of government -- programs or departments -- that you would cut or eliminate.

I would repeal the 700-mile border fence law, which border communities do not want and which will cost taxpayers billions of dollars. The fence law represents a failure in border policy and provides no more than a Band-Aid approach to enforcement.

I would also cut the rampant and expensive abuses we have seen from government contractors like Halliburton and Blackwater. Crony contracting is bad for the taxpayer, does not serve the interests of our country, and has no place in our government.

5. Name specific areas of government -- programs or departments -- that you would expand.

I am currently fighting to increase personnel, strengthen infrastructure, and provide sufficient resources at our nation's international bridges.

I am also fighting to increase federal investment in math and science education, especially for groups under-represented in the math and science fields, principally Hispanics, African-Americans, and women. I am working to commit more math and science resources to Hispanic Serving Institutions like UTEP and El Paso Community College and to put highly-qualified math and science teachers in classrooms in high-need schools.