More on the GBIC, Jason Hilts, The Art of Self-Promotion

From the editor:  We are adding a few more personal observations from our attendance at yesterday's GBIC board meeting.  As noted in yesterday's article, the meeting was dominated by the testimony of Jason Hilts, a man who a decade ago faced charges of using a city credit card for extravagant personal items.  Instead of termination, Hilts was promoted to Administrator of the board.  That sort of resilience invites a more careful look at the methodology of salesmanship.

When Administrator Jason Hilts appears before the GBIC board, his mission is two-fold;  tantalize the board with their favorite buzzwords indicating economic growth, increased revenue AND reassure the members that his tireless efforts on the city's behalf justify his six figure income and lavish travel.  Hilts is a salesman and those in sales are always aware of the need to "sell themselves."

One company will provide "300 jobs immediately" but eventually need 600 full-time employees.  Another firm will add "1300 jobs over 8 years."  "100 machinists at $20,00 per hour" has a nice ring in this impoverished community.  While the company's name may be somewhat obscure, we all learn the particulars, however overstated.  Just to illustrate, think SpaceX.  Even young Debbie Portillo is repeating the line "1000 jobs at a minimum of $55,000" although Elon Musk says nothing close to that in official company projections.

Ruben Gallegos took the bait, or was perhaps cleverly setting up his friend Hilts with:  "That's a lot of work, Jason."

Hilts responded:  "Yes, it's a lot of hard work."  What Hilts had been describing and Gallegos lauded was the process of finding 75 appropriate acres for the Finnish foundry.  "We had a perfect site until we found that the electrical service would not be P.U.B."  When someone whispered "Magic Valley," Hilts nodded.  Another site, near the port, thought also to be "perfect" was found to historically have been a landfill, not the proper ground to take the weight and constant pounding of a foundry.  The picture is painted that Hilts is carefully protecting all our interests, maneuvering things so that a $200,000,000 company becomes part of the Brownsville tax base and spends its megawatt energy dollars with P.U.B.  Yes, Hilts is selling Hilts.

On a much smaller scale, a lady representing a non-profit, VIDA, presented herself for public comment.  While thanking the GBIC board for funding, she took the opportunity to update the results achieved by such generosity.  She stated that 45 individuals had been "serviced" by her entity, all in the "difficult" 21 to 50 year old age range.  While 50 had been suggested as a benchmark to justify funding, she felt certain that number would be achieved by the end of the year.  Not to be illogically cynical, who knows what these numbers really mean, but it is all part of the necessary justification of tax dollars. It contributes to the common "feel good."

In both examples, tangible results are unnecessary.  All that counts is that, as Donna Summer once said in song, both recipients "work hard for the money."