Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González
Pepe Cabeza de Vaca, a McAllen City Commissioner, has voiced strong opposition to Propositions A and B, proposed by Ground Game Texas, citing them as deceptive and unnecessary for McAllen. “Many people got tricked into signing those petitions because they discussed anti-corruption,” he explains. Cabeza de Vaca recalls his personal experience during the primaries when he was approached with the petition. “Of course, you know, I don’t like corruption… but what you are telling me and the anti-corruption that you presented in the beginning are two different things,” he said, emphasizing that McAllen has no corruption issues.
Cabeza de Vaca argues that Proposition A, which aims to limit individual campaign donations to $500, is hypocritical. “The group from Austin, these outsiders… more than 23 people have donated to this same group, and they have given more than $500 to them. So, it applies only to us, not to them.” He pointed out that McAllen’s campaign donations are fully transparent, with public records available on the city’s website, a level of transparency he says refutes any claim of corruption.
Proposition B, which allows for easier recalls and overturning city ordinances, is another point of contention. “We surround ourselves with professionals to go ahead and tell us the best things to do for the city,” said Cabeza de Vaca. He argued that removing officials based on one decision or overturning ordinances disrupts the democratic process: “That’s called elections. If people don’t like… the way that we vote, they can vote us out four years later whenever it’s our time. We don’t need to recall or to overturn ordinances.”
Cabeza de Vaca also voiced concerns about the organization’s more extensive agenda, saying, “This same group is… behind the decriminalization of marijuana in other cities and also defunding the police officers.” He expressed apprehension that Ground Game Texas’s approach would compromise McAllen’s status as the third safest city in the country, emphasizing that law enforcement funding is critical to maintaining safety.
With McAllen ranking among the top 10 cities of its size in Texas and nationally, Cabeza de Vaca asserts that Ground Game Texas’s propositions are harmful and irrelevant to McAllen’s well-being. “We don’t need outsiders to tell us how to run a very well-run city,” he stated, urging residents to vote against Propositions A and B, saying, “Vote NO to Proposition A & B.”
Cabeza de Vaca’s stance stresses his commitment to keeping McAllen safe, transparent, and free from external influence. He challenges Ground Game Texas’s legitimacy, highlighting their ethical controversies, saying, “They are hypocrites because they’ve been in trouble with the law and ethics. And now they’re trying to bring this to McAllen.”
