Methodist Conference rejects Bush Presidential Library; Passes resolution to South Central Jurisdiction Conference

United Methodist Conference - South Central Jurisdiction Conference - April 28, 2008
Methodist Conference votes against the Bush Presidential Library
A report on the Methodist Church General Conference web page shows the
Conference has voted to reject the Bush Presidential Library at SMU -
by vote of 855 to 20. The vote of 844 to 20 by the Methodist Church General Conference referred the resolution, below, to the "South Central Jurisdictional
Conference." This will be held July 16-19, 2008, at the Anatole Hotel
in Dallas. We understand there has NOT been a final decision on the
church's position on the Bush Library.

Here is a list of Delegates who will vote on the resolution:


From the General Conference

SMU Bush Presidential Library Rejection (80089-MH-NonDis)

I hereby petition the UMC General Conference to prevent leasing,
selling, or otherwise participating in or supporting the presidential
library for George W. Bush at Southern Methodist University.

Rationale

We should support separation of church and state and if the Bush
library goes on the SMU campus or property it will appear to the
country and the world as an endorsement of that president by the
United Methodist Church. Texas is a big state; surely there are
other venues...

Vote on Main Motion
This motion was Adopted, with 844 votes for and 20 votes against.http://www.calms.umc.org/2008/Menu.aspx?type=Petition&mode=Single&Number=80089

SMU Bush Presidential Library Rejection (80089-MH-NonDis)*
*Petition Status: Calendar Item
*Petition Text: Submitted Text ADCA p. 1493
*References: Non-disciplinary
*Committee: Ministry and Higher Education
Menu.aspx?type=Petition&mode=Committee&cc=MH
*Financial Implications: No
*Submitted by: Diane Smock, Greenville, SC, USA


SMU Bush Presidential Library Rejection (MH171-NonDis-R)
Calendar Item Status:
* Committee Voted (Printed in DCA p. 2260)
Calendar Item No: 1185
Menu.aspx?type=Calendar&mode=Single&number=1185
*Petitions on Calendar: 80089
Menu.aspx?type=Petition&mode=Single&Number=89
Consent Calendar: Calendar D04
Menu.aspx?type=Calendar&mode=Consent&calendar=D04
Committee Motion: Motion to Refer
Refer to: South Central Jurisdictional Conference
Committee Vote:
*For: 51
*Against: 5
*Not Voting: 1
NOTE: FOR VOTE REJECTS THE LIBRARY. AGAINST VOTE APPROVES OF LIBRARY
Vote Date and Time: 4/28/2008 1:30 PM


Last Vote Action: Vote on Main Motion
This motion was *Adopted*, with 844 votes for and 20 votes against.

*Plenary Motions: 4/30/2008 9:39 AM*
/Vote on Main Motion/ *ADOPTED* 844-20
Report by Tom Blackwell

Border Fencing - Congressmen debate merits of border fence in public hearing at UTB-TSC

By Kevin Sieff - The Brownsville Herald - April 29, 2008
Construction of the U.S.-Mexico border fence might only be a few weeks away, but in Washington, D.C., the barrier continues to be a hot button issue.

The fence's significance - and its divisiveness - became clear on Monday, when eight congressmen and a number of local, state and national officials met at the University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College for a congressional field hearing.

U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., introduced the hearing, titled "Walls and Waivers," as a forum on the expedited construction of the border fence and its affect on the environment along the border. During the five-hour hearing, the conversation shifted to a more general evaluation of the barrier's merits.

"To examine the history, culture, economics of the border and then to decide the only solution is a 700-mile fence," Grijalva said in opening remarks, "is simply a failure of leadership."

U.S. Reps. Tom Tancredo, R-Col., and Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., both former 2008 presidential hopefuls, disagreed with Grijalva. Hunter referred to the success of a double fence in his district, on the border between San Diego and Tijuana.

"Our fence put the border gangs out of business because they lost their ability to move back and forth," said Hunter, who authored the Secure Fence Act of 2006.

Tancredo took issue with what he called "landowners' multi-culturalist views on the border."

"If you don't like the idea (of a fence), maybe you should consider building the fence around the northern part of your city," Tancredo said amid jeers from the audience.

The six other members of the congressional panel were outspoken in their opposition to the fence - and to the views of Hunter and Tancredo.

Perhaps the most substantial opposition to the barrier came from U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas, a former Border Patrol chief, who called the fence a waste of the government's resources.

"For 10 percent of the border we need to consider the potential for fencing," he said. "I certainly don't think we need 700 miles of fencing."

Ronald Vitiello, chief Border Patrol agent in the Rio Grande Valley sector, said the barrier will decrease border crossings - but only if it is complemented with a boots-on-the-ground effort.

Reyes, who used to oversee the Valley's Border Patrol sector, said of Vitiello, "He's going to toe the party line - he's got to if he wants to maintain his job as chief of the sector."

To the dismay of the eight congressmen, the fence's architects at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security declined an invitation to the hearing. The absence of a DHS official left a number of questions unanswered.

"We'll seek out these answers in Washington," Grijalva said after the hearing.

The presence of 13 witnesses, many of whom live and work along the border, marked the convergence of a national political debate and a local dilemma.

"We need federal legislation that will protect borders in a humane and Christian way," said Bishop Raymundo J. Pena, of the Archdiocese of Brownsville.

"It isn't really a border to most of us who live down here," added Betty Perez, a local landowner and activist.

The articulation of local attitudes toward the fence was echoed by most of the congressmen in attendance, several of which were born along the U.S.-Mexico border. U.S. Rep. Grace Napolitano, D-California, is a native of Brownsville.

"Nothing is going to change until immigration policy is taken care of," Napolitano said on Monday. "The fence is ludicrous."
Read more in the Brownsville Herald Tribune