If county officials received merit pay, District Attorney Armando Villalobos would owe several years of salary to Cameron County.  He should also pay back the cost of office utilities that kept him climaticly comfortable,  the costs associated with transporting him from home to office and back, the fees associated with keeping him electronically connected to the his constituents and the information highway.  I do not begrudge his staff their pay as they simply must follow orders, although, if whispers are correct, Mando owes the county for the large segment of their workweeks devoted to his congressional campaign.
     Villalobos as district attorney is as effective as a lifeguard with a water phobia.  As we stated a few days ago:  "We pay a district attorney handsomely in Cameron County to fight corruption, but like the cowardly lion in the Wizard of Oz, Armando Villalobos never had the courage.  He deferred, stepped over, ignored the rampant political corruption in the county so as not to antagonize any segment of political support as he used the district attorney's office to launch his campaign for yet higher office."
     If you think I'm overstating this, please consider the courage it takes for a citizen to come forward to report a crime, whether it be an act of political corruption, an assault, a robbery or some sort of white collar crime.  They may be putting themselves in harm's way, risking retaliation, possibly including bodily injury or even death.  Then consider the countless hours and expense of law enforcement in investigating, gathering evidence, apprehending, etc.  All of this is for absolute naught if the district attorney fails to prosecute.  Not to mention that the climate created by a do-nothing DA is one of emboldening political and other criminals to continue their corruption.  Do you think County Commissioner Ernie Hernandez is the least bit worried about Villalobos proceeding with a case against him in the orchestrated, dishonest hiring of his felonious brother-in-law or that Carlos Quintanilla is the least bit worried about a perjury charge for false testimony in a deposition or two?
     Villalobos has to be living in an absolute vacuum to have the unmitigated gall to run for higher office after exhibiting total failure in his current one.  Armando Villalobos for Congress?  That's an absolute joke!