As Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples prepares to head to Cuba, Texas Secretary of State Phil Wilson is hanging out with Texas business leaders in The Big Apple. He rang NASDAQ's closing bell.
When shifting from his position on the Governor's staff to Governor's appointee, Wilson retained his role as an economic development expert/liason for the state. According to Wilson's office, there are over 160 Texas-based companies listed on the NASDAQ exchange with a total market value of nearly $120 billion.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples is making the first trip to Cuba by a statewide elected official in more than four decades. And he's bringing friends -- an entire delegation of folks from Texas to talk about expanding trade deals with the Caribbean country.
"This is a great opportunity to build long-lasting trade relationships with Cuba," Commissioner Staples said. "We want Texas producers to have access to this growing market and for Cubans to have the chance to enjoy the best agricultural products the world offers: Texas food and fiber."
You may be thinking, wait, we trade with Cuba? Yes, indeed. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Texas has exported well over $100 million in agricultural products to Cuba since 2000. That's when Congress partially lifted the trade embargo against the island nation (which was enacted under JFK).
They're baaaaack. The 3am phone call! The sleeping kids! This time, "something is happening in the world" and it's an economic crisis. John McCain would just let the phone keep ringing, according to Hillary Clinton's latest red phone ad.
