Mexican President Seeks To Influence U.S. Election
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Monday decried anti-immigrant perceptions in the United States and argued that Mexican immigrants complement American workers.
Calderon’s trip has been billed as a high-stakes effort to shape the immigration debate during the U.S. presidential race.
On his first trip to the U.S. as Mexico’s president, Calderon said he is working to combat anti-Americanism in Mexico and to improve job prospects there to reduce migration. He said he hopes that Americans resist anti-Mexican sentiments.
“The worst thing that happened in this country is this anti-Mexican or anti-immigrant perception of people. We need to contain this,” Calderon said after a speech at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
“I need to change in Mexico the perception that the Americans are the enemy, and it is important to change the perception that the Mexicans are the enemy,” he said. “We are neighbors, we are friends and we must be allies.”
The combination of American wealth and Mexican labor is an irresistible economic force, Calderon said.
“You have two economies. One economy is intensive in capital, which is the American economy. One economy is intensive in labor, which is the Mexican economy,” he said. “We are two complementary economies, and that phenomenon is impossible to stop.”
Immigration remains a key issue in nominating contests, particularly among Republicans, amid calls for toughened border security and a border fence.
“The American economy is suffering, but if you take the point of view that the solution for this situation, a lack of competitiveness of the American economy, is closing the border, you are making a very big mistake,” Calderon said.
During his speech, Calderon said that he had worked hard to combat drug gangs in Mexico but that the effort would be long, costly and difficult. He also pointed a finger at the U.S., saying the drug trade in Mexico is contingent on the demand for illegal drugs north of the border.
“Drugs are not just our problem. We are the neighbor of the largest consumer in the world,” he said.
Earlier Monday, Calderon and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon discussed climate change, counter-narcotics efforts and U.N. anti-poverty goals during a private meeting in New York. Calderon also will visit Chicago, Los Angeles and Sacramento, Calif.
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Actually, he makes some really good points.
Listen, the only way we can really get to the root of this illegal immigration problem here is to work together with Mexico … but ONLY after they clean up their own corrupt house and prove that THEY are serious about the issue.
February 12th, 2008 at 8:14 amI think we can get to the root of it by kicking all of them out and then building the FENCE!
“You have two economies. One economy is intensive in capital, which is the American economy. One economy is intensive in labor, which is the Mexican economy,” he said. “We are two complementary economies, and that phenomenon is impossible to stop.”
Me: This is a slap in the face, there are tons of Americans in the labor industry. What he really means is, if it wasnt for illegals sending money back to Mexico they wouldnt even have an economy
February 12th, 2008 at 8:21 amKurt -
Yup.
It goes back to the corruption factor within Mexico. It’s a plague they can’t seen to shake. Their tourist areas are fabulous and have great economies. But what does it say about a country where tourists are advised NOT to stray far from the established resort areas …
February 12th, 2008 at 8:37 am” if it wasnt for illegals sending money back to Mexico they wouldnt even have an economy”
And then the people would string my ass up to the nearest cactus! That’s the truth of why they don’t want a wall built and reason enough for us to build one. If we need laborers after the wall is built then we let some guest workers in, LEGALLY.
February 12th, 2008 at 8:40 amQ: Apparently we as American taxpayers have somehow in this past budget sent $1.4 Billion to Mexico to secure their Southern border, why aren’t they using the remittances being sent back to Mexico to do this?
If this isn’t bad enough then this pompous prick gets on the JFK School of Govt soapbox and says this,
“I need to change in Mexico the perception that the Americans are the enemy, and it is important to change the perception that the Mexicans are the enemy,”
So we whose country is being drawn down from a 1st world nation to his 3rd world status should just shrug our shoulders and take this crap?
I also have another question, given most of the leftist ideological stump speeches given at the JFK School of Govt, if he were alive today does anyone think JFK would be for open borders like his lame little drunken brother Teddy?
February 12th, 2008 at 9:22 amI thought it was verboten for foreign leaders to try and influence other people’s elections. Where’s the outrage?
February 12th, 2008 at 2:08 pm