Mexico, GOP Establishment Try to Block Tariffs and Immigration Deal

It is not clear if Ebrard’s opposition to a safe third country deal is shared by other Mexican leaders. He is an outspoken opponent of Trump who compared him to Adolf Hitler during the 2016 election.

In contrast, many Mexican officials recognize that Trump’s proposed tariffs could badly damage Mexico’s economy.

Mexico’s President López Obrador is zig-zagging. He released a letter on Thursday saying Americans cannot exclude migrants, but posted a tweet on Sunday saying, “The president of Mexico wants to continue being a great friend of President Trump”:

El gobierno de México es amigo del gobierno de EUA. El presidente de México quiere seguir siendo amigo del presidente Trump.
Los mexicanos somos amigos del pueblo estadounidense. A ellos les digo desde Paraíso: Juremos que nada ni nadie separe nuestra bonita y sagrada amistad.

— Andrés Manuel (@lopezobrador_) June 2, 2019

According to Reuters, Obrador declined to rule out a safe third country deal when he was asked during a Saturday press conference. “He did not answer the question, but pressure has grown steadily on his government to give ground on the issue,” Reuters said.

However, Obrador also said that “the main thing is to inform about what we’re already doing on the migration issue, and if it’s necessary to reinforce these measures without violating human rights, we could be prepared to reach that deal.”

Obrador is touting support from Mexico’s billionaires who oppose Trump’s promise to raise trade tariffs if Mexico does not curb the Central American migration into the United States.

“I appreciate the solidarity of rich and poor, of the vast majority of Mexicans on the issue of rates that President Trump wants to impose. As expressed by humble families, it is transmitted by businessmen like Slim, Alemán, and others. See the letter from Alberto Baillères,” he said in a Monday tweet:

Agradezco la solidaridad de ricos y pobres, de la inmensa mayoría de los mexicanos en el tema de las tarifas que quiere imponer el presidente Trump. Igual que lo expresaron familias humildes, lo transmiten empresarios como Slim, Alemán y otros. Vean la carta de Alberto Baillères: pic.twitter.com/71wbjw9EIk

— Andrés Manuel (@lopezobrador_) June 3, 2019

The letter, from Mexican multi-billionaire Alberto Baillères, said:

Dear Senior President, regarding the letter you sent to President Trump in relation to the threat of imposing tariffs on Mexican products, I wish to congratulate and express support and sympathy for you. Both the content and the tone of the letter, written with dignity and decorum, show the character of a head of state who knows how to defend the interests of our beloved Mexico in a constructive way.

I send you a cordial greeting, with respect and affection.

Ballieres’ companies are involved in silver mining insurance, retail stores, financial services, and agriculture.

U.S. business groups are also trying to block Trump’s tariff strategy, saying that immigration and trade policies should not be linked.

But White House officials want the safe third country deal, Politico reported Tuesday:

“I know for a fact that they’ve been pushing hard for Mexico to sign that safe third country [deal],” [acting ICE director Mark] Morgan said Tuesday. “The international standard is that when you depart a country, you claim asylum in the first country you come to.”

Immigration Numbers

Each year, roughly four million young Americans join the workforce after graduating from high school or university.

But the federal government then imports about 1.1 million legal immigrants and refreshes a resident population of roughly 1.5 million white-collar visa workers — including approximately one million H-1B workers — and approximately 500,000 blue-collar visa workers.

The government also prints out more than one million work permits for foreigners, tolerates about eight million illegal workers, and does not punish companies for employing the hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants who sneak across the border or overstay their legal visas each year.

This policy of inflating the labor supply boosts economic growth for investors because it ensures that employers do not have to compete for American workers by offering higher wages and better working conditions.

This policy of flooding the market with cheap, foreign, white-collar graduates and blue-collar labor also shifts enormous wealth from young employees towards older investors, even as it also widens wealth gaps, reduces high-tech investment, increases state and local tax burdens, and hurts children’s schools and college educations. It also pushes Americans away from high-tech careers and sidelines millions of marginalized Americans, including many who are now struggling with fentanyl addictions. The labor policy also moves business investment and wealth from the heartland to the coastal cities, explodes rents and housing costs, shrivels real estate values in the Midwest, and rewards investors for creating low-tech, labor-intensive workplaces.

Story cited here.

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