| | |  News from Around Banderas Bay | March 2009 
Democrats Abroad Mexico Annual General Meeting and Conference
 democratsabraod.org
| | For more information, or to become a member of the Costa Banderas Chapter of Democrats Abroad Mexico, please visit DemocratsAbroad.org. | |
Puerto Vallarta - The Democrats Abroad Mexico Annual General Meeting in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico provided an opportunity for the local chapter, known as the Costa Banderas Chapter, to organize and present a series of informative panel discussions, documentary film screenings, and related events over the weekend of March 7 to 9, 2009.
While the focus was decidedly on issues of interest to Democrats Abroad members, the general public was welcomed to all the events throughout the weekend. The tone was decidedly progressive, with invited experts on health policy, international economics and finance, Latin American studies, and U.S. defense policy.
The conference kicked on Saturday with a panel discussion on US-Mexico relations, featuring Dr. Daniel Grippo, who provided the historical context for the current state of relations between the two countries.
Dr. Rodrigo Garcia Verdu, Chief of Staff to the Mexican Undersecretary of the Economy and former World Bank researcher, expressed his government's interest in cooperation for mutual benefit on a range of issues including migration and economics.
Terrance O'Rourke Maldonado, former president of a large investment bank in Mexico, discussed the state of current direct investment and the opportunities for investment in Mexico. And Amy Isaacs, the National Director of Americans for Democratic Action discussed the prospects for improved bilateral relations under the Obama administration. The session was moderated by Costa Banderas Chair Roberta Camhi.
A gala seaside dinner on Saturday evening was highlighted by a speech by Paul Crist, an economist, progressive activist, businessman, and philanthropist who resides in Puerto Vallarta and Washington, DC. Crist spoke about a range of issues including the historical parallels of the current economic crisis with earlier economic events and associated policy responses; the danger of continuing to support financial institutions deemed "too big to fail;" and the need for the Democratic Party to think beyond policy solutions for specific issues in order to clarify a governing principle that the Party can be identified with. Crist noted that unless Democrats can articulate a coherent set of principles to the American people, the current leadership enjoyed by the party may not endure.
On Sunday morning, an audience viewed a documentary film on the U.S. military-industrial complex, and subsequently developed a resolution calling for a reduction in defense spending, to be presented for consideration at the DPCA meeting at the end of April in Washington, DC. Joan McKinney, former Director of Members of Congress for Peace through Law was the featured expert. The discussion was moderated by Roberta Jensen of Puerto Vallarta.
The Sunday afternoon panel focused on healthcare reform and Medicare. Dr. Ellen Marie Whelan, Associate Director of Health Policy and Senior Health Policy Analyst at the Center for American Progress (CAP) discussed the prospects for healthcare reform in 2009, and the importance of revamping Medicare to overall improvements in the U.S. healthcare industry.
Dr. Rodrigo Garcia Verdu presented the findings of his extensive survey of U.S. citizens resident in Mexico. That survey found that large majorities of expatriates find that healthcare services are both better quality and far less costly in Mexico than in the U.S. Most of those surveyed felt that if Medicare and other U.S. coverage were available in Mexico, many more Americans would choose to live and retire to Mexico, promoting economic growth and reducing pressure for Mexican migration to the U.S.
Amy Isaacs presented her views on single-payer healthcare coverage and how Medicare might provide a basis for such a system. Dr. David Warner, Professor of Public Policy at the University of Texas, Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Policy informed the meeting about the current opportunities and challenges of bringing Medicare services to Mexico. Paul Crist moderated the session.
Finally, on Monday morning, the Annual General Meeting for Democrats Abroad Mexico was presided by outgoing Country Chair Howard Feldstein. On the agenda was the election of new Executive Committee officers. John de Leon was elected the new Country Chair; Sandra Loridans was elected Vice Chair; Gretchen Sullivan accepted the post of Secretary; and Paul Crist will serve as the Treasurer.
Two resolutions were discussed and approved by acclamation. These included the defense spending proposal previously mentioned and a proposal to urge Congress to support a Demonstration Project for Medicare in Mexico. The resolutions will be presented for consideration at the Democratic Party Committee Abroad (DPCA) meeting to be held in Washington, DC on April 25-26.
For more information about the Costa Banderas Chapter of Democrats Abroad, click HERE. For local assistance, contact Susan Wichterman at 044-322-303-5181 or mexicoms(at)hotmail.com or Paul Crist at 322-222-4793 or editor(at)mexicodemocrats.org. |
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