They鈥檙e both originally from Mexico, but one now lives in 蜜柚直播, the other in Tempe.
Their reactions to the victory of Donald Trump in the presidential election couldn鈥檛 have been more different.
Art Del Cueto, 42, has become a well-known 蜜柚直播an because of his outspokenness as president of the union for agents in the Border Patrol鈥檚 蜜柚直播 Sector. He was among those who pushed for the national union to endorse Trump early in the primary election process 鈥 a highly controversial decision.
Now, he鈥檚 in the catbird seat, enjoying unprecedented access for front line agents to a presidential administration.
Joel Cornejo, 20, is a relatively unknown young man up in Tempe who attends Maricopa Community College. His family came to the country from Mexico City when he was 7 years old, and he is enrolled in the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program, created through an executive order by President Obama, that allows people brought to the country as undocumented children to have temporary legal status.
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Trump has promised to overturn the program, putting Cornejo and thousands of others at risk.
Del Cueto, also a vice president of the national union, helped convince the National Border Patrol Council to take the risk of endorsing Trump back in March. It was a high-risk move because Trump was a controversial candidate, of course, and the union had never endorsed a candidate for president before the general election. I was among many who criticized the decision.
Now the gamble is paying off for the union.
鈥淚 was there Tuesday, the night of the elections,鈥 Del Cueto said. 鈥淒onald Trump came down after he was done with his speech. He looked at me and said 鈥楾hese are my guys.鈥 He pointed right at me, gave me a high five and said, 鈥楪et ready to work.鈥 That鈥檚 important, when the president tells you that, it鈥檚 a big deal.鈥
Of course, Del Cueto had a cellphone video as proof this happened. But it鈥檚 not really disputable that the union has an unprecedented 鈥渋n鈥 with a president. Trump spoke about the union鈥檚 endorsement all the time in his stump speeches. He met with Del Cueto and other union representatives many times.
Since the election, they鈥檝e been in touch with the transition team daily, Del Cueto said.
鈥淗e considers us the experts in border security,鈥 he said of Trump.
What exactly Trump will do in terms of immigration policy is unclear. He said in an interview with 鈥60 Minutes,鈥 aired Sunday, that he plans to follow through on his commitment to build more of a border wall, though some could be fencing. He also said he expects to deport 2 million to 3 million people who he estimated are people convicted of crimes and who are illegally in the country.
Other experts have disputed that number as far too high. What Del Cueto expects is a rollback of Obama administration policies that the union says were keeping border agents from doing their jobs.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not asking for special laws,鈥 he said. 鈥淎ll we鈥檙e asking for is that the laws that are on the books be enforced.鈥
When I asked for specifics, Del Cueto said, 鈥淎 lot of it is being able to deport individuals that we arrest, as opposed to giving them a paper and saying, 鈥榩lease report to the nearest immigration (office) when you get where you鈥檙e going鈥, putting them on a bus and never hearing from them again.鈥
As a union officer, Del Cueto sees many of the disciplinary and criminal complaints against agents, whom the union provides with representation. The union has regularly resisted efforts to hold agents criminally accountable for excessive use of force. But he said the change in administration should not lead to any increase in bad acts by agents, who just want to do their jobs.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 see agents all of a sudden running rogue,鈥 he said.
He acknowledged agents could participate in the arrest of people who have been living for years in the country illegally, if the Trump administration pursues the increase in deportations as promised.
Generally, though, enforcing immigration laws in the interior of the country is a duty reserved for a different agency, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Such operations could put agents in contact with people like Cornejo.
Election night left Cornejo deflated, he said, without sleep and afraid to leave the house.
鈥淚 was just disappointed overall,鈥 he told me Tuesday. 鈥淚 feel kind of betrayed by the country. What I鈥檓 doing to protect myself is I鈥檓 getting more involved in the movement.鈥
The movement, he said, is of undocumented youths seeking to stay in the country where they鈥檝e grown up.
鈥淚鈥檓 scared to lose everything,鈥 he said. 鈥淔or myself, I think I鈥檓 really strong emotionally. I do fear for my family. For example, my sister goes to ASU and she鈥檚 got a scholarship. I鈥檓 scared she鈥檒l lose everything that she鈥檚 worked for.鈥
鈥淚鈥檓 scared for me, for my sister, for my family, for my parents, for my community,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hat also feeds my anger and my motivation to come out and still fight.鈥
Cornejo was the only Dreamer, as they鈥檙e known, I was able to interview despite contacting others in 蜜柚直播 whom I and other Star reporters have interviewed before. The election, it seems, is driving them underground.
That鈥檚 not surprising, of course. Like Del Cueto鈥檚 story, it shows how the stakes of this election were so high.
