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SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador—California Governor Gavin Newsom’s three-day trip to this Central American country was billed as an exploration of the root causes of migration, an unprecedented and controversial departure from the trade junkets of governors past. But by journey’s end, it was sounding more like the overseas missions Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown led, bringing home lucrative business opportunities to the Golden State.
“El Salvador is open for investment,” Newsom told KCBS Radio at the close of his trip. “And I want to play an active role, individually and my administration, in seeking that investment.”
On his last day in El Salvador, Newsom met with president-elect Nayib Bukele, who embraced Newsom and complimented him in front of reporters. “He’s a very smart, cool, interesting person,” Bukele said, noting that he hopes to work with the Californian to develop the country’s coastline and stimulate its surfing and tourism industry.
“You can talk about a metaphorical wall,” said DeSola. “If you build opportunity, you don’t need a wall on your border. Instead of exporting people and importing goods and services, we should be doing the opposite. And that’s our dream.”
A dream that Newsom clearly shares, and embraced. “You’re never going to address the issue of migration by building a wall on your border,” he said. “Build investment in El Salvador instead. Economic development is the wall within the Northern Triangle that will address this issue.”
Newsom also told KCBS Radio that he’d like to see the University of California start a program in El Salvador, and he intends to adjust his budget proposal when he revises it in May to target funds to help migrants who are already in California, especially with legal and mental health services and programs for youth.
And, one last time, he defended his decision to come to El Salvador, which some have criticized as overstepping his bounds as a governor.
“My term’s roughly thirty-five thousand hours. I spen forty-eight down here.”