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Maintain contact with Washington friends
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Posted on Jun 13 2000
Senate President Paul A. Manglona yesterday underscored the need to maintain contact with “friends” of the CNMI in Washington following a brief courtesy visit by T.E. Manase Mansur, chief aide to Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), chair of the U.S. House Resources Committee.
The meeting, however, did not tackle official business as Mr. Mansur was on a private visit helping the CNMI Republican Party with party-building activities in a bid to get recognition by the national GOP.
Mr. Mansur, who is also liaison of the George W. Bush’s national presidential campaign committee for American Samoa, Guam and the CNMI, left Saipan yesterday after a four-day visit that began last Thursday.
“We just need to maintain our contact with friends because they are the ones helping us in Washington,” said Mr. Manglona after the brief meeting. Rep. Diego T. Benavente was also in that meeting.
As key adviser on insular and international affairs for the Resources Committee which has oversight of the CNMI and other U.S. jurisdictions, Mr. Mansur has visited the islands several times in the past to update Commonwealth leaders of congressional proposals.
Earlier, he assured the island government of better relations under the Bush presidency, noting that the Texas governor has a solid record of supporting state and local governments.
Mr. Bush, son and namesake of the former president, is facing Vice President Al Gore, the Democrats bet, in the November 2000 presidential elections.
The CNMI has been drawing support of Republican leaders in the U.S. Congress — whom island leaders sympathetic to local situation — to block attempts by the Clinton administration to push legislation that will extend federal laws on local immigration, minimum wage and custom standards.
