US Foreign Policy with Mexico

Colin O’Brien

Zili Xu

History

• Early Mexican history follows closely to early American history.

• Mexico started off as a Spanish Colony and remained one until 1821 when they were officially recognized as an Independent Country

• Relationship between the two young countries were good and borders were established in the Adams-Otis treaty Americans began to expand into Mexican territory in Texas and California

• Relationships sparked and Mexico lost Texas in 1836 which became its own Republic, and in 1845 during the Mexican American war

History

• During the Mexican American war, Mexico lost California and New Mexico and the US forgave all Mexican debts.

• In 1853, Mexico sold a strip of land in Southern Arizona called the Gadsden Purchase

Illegal Drugs and then Rise of the Cartels

• The Mexican Drug Cartels came to power shortly after the powerful Colombian Drug Lord Pablo Escobar, and the Medellín Cartel was destroyed in the early 1990’s

• The US Department of Justice considers the Mexican Drug Cartels to be the most dangerous Organized Crime threat to the United States

• The US State Department believes that the Mexican Drug Cartels are responsible for 70% of all foreign narcotics and 90% of all cocaine in America

Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo, The Godfather of the Mexican Drug Cartels

Mexican Drug War

• Over 1000 Mexican Judges and prosecutors have been killed

• Over 400 Mexican soldiers and Police Officers have been killed

• The death count for the Mexican War has exceeded 28,000 and the violence has increased each year

• In the last 18 months, Mexico has spent over 7 Billion US dollars on the drug war

• Over 200 American Citizens have been killed in the last three years in border areas and tourist areas

US Intervention

• Mexico is considered a “Certified” Country meaning that we approve of it’s anti drug campaign. A certified country receives aid from America to fight it’s war on drugs while one that is not certified cannot receive any financial aid.

• The Mérida Initiative is a security cooperation between the US and Mexican government which trains and equips Mexican Law Enforcement

• In June of 2008, Congress passed legislation to give 400 million dollars to Mexico to fight it’s drug war

• In 2009 US Military Assessment stated that if this drug war was to extend another 25 years than the government would collapse

• Secretary Hillary Clinton believes that America’s demand for drugs share much of the blame and that the US Government should use military intervention to the same or greater extent than they did in Colombia in the early 1990’s

US Intervention• Mexican President Felipe Calderón responded by saying that the U.S.

government was “good at criticizing other countries and not recognizing that they are an important part of this dark chain of drug trafficking and organized crime. The Mexican people should reject any interventionist attitude on the part of the U.S. government.”

• Some notable Republicans including Sen. Jesse Helms and Rep. Benjamin Gilman have argued against certification of Mexico because of the government’s illicit ties to the Cartels and Mexico’s inability to end the Drug War and argue that the US should punish the Mexican Government

PRO’s CON’s

US Intervention

•The US needs to contain the Mexican Cartels from spilling over into the US

•We cannot share a 2000 mile border with an unstable government

•This war has claimed almost 30,000 lives and the Mexican government has showed they have no means to end it

•US military intervention worked in Colombia

•US military intervention would cost millions of dollars and many American lives

•This war would be fought along the American border and possibly on American soil

•America would be interfering with the sovereignty of the Mexican Government who has made it known that they are opposed to US intervention

Illegal Weapons

• While shipments of Cocaine, Heroine, and Methamphetamines have flowed into America, Illegal weapons used to fuel this war can be traced back to the US

• Guns cannot be legally sold in Mexico, so most Cartel members get there guns through “Straw Purchases” in the United States

• 90% of weapons that can be traced were traced back to the United States

Poll on Drug Violence

Jones, Jeffrey. “Most Americans Concerned About Mexico's Drug Violence”. Gallup.com, 3 April. 2009. 10 Nov 2010

NAFTA

• NAFTA went into effect on 1/1/1994• It had many goals such as removing barriers to

trade and facilitate the cross-border movement of goods and services

• It is to have an elimination or gradual elimination of trade tariffs and create procedures for settling trade disputes.

• It replaced the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, which had been in effect for 5 years

Economic Relationship

• Mexico is U.S.’s 2nd largest trade partner in exports and 3 largest in imports.

• Trade has increased from $297 billion in 1993 to $1 trillion in 2007.

• 12% of total U.S. merchandise exports were destined for Mexico and 11% of U.S. merchandise imports came from Mexico

• Over 80% of Mexico’s exports go to the U.S. and 48% of Mexico’s imports come from the U.S.

NAFTA – Pro• Trade has increased dramatically since NAFTA• NAFTA boosted U.S. farm products exports• NAFTA boosted U.S. service exports to Canada

and Mexico from $25 billion in 1993 to $106.8 billion in 2007

• Lower oil prices since the U.S. imports oil from Canada and Mexico

• U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI) in Canada and Mexico more than tripled to $348.7 billion

• U.S. investment and job creation in Mexico helps that developing country

Amadeo, Kimberly. “Advantages of NAFTA”. About.com. 11 Nov. 2010

NAFTA - Con• Loss of U.S. jobs, especially in the manufacturing

sector as these jobs are moved to Mexico. A net loss of 3.6 million jobs.

• Companies use the threat of moving factories to Mexico to deter unions and suppress wages

• Mexican farmers cannot compete with subsided U.S. farm products such as corn, causing a loss of 1.3 million jobs

• Growth of urban slums fuels illegal immigration• Pollution increased drastically in Mexico• Big corporations gained means to sue the government

if they interfere with their unfair practices

Poll on NAFTA

English, Cynthia. “Opinion Briefing: North American Free Trade Agreement” Gallup.com, 12 Dec 2008. 11 Nov. 2010

Poll on NAFTA

English, Cynthia. “Opinion Briefing: North American Free Trade Agreement” Gallup.com, 12 Dec 2008. 11 Nov. 2010

Interest Groups (Anti-NAFTA)

• the AFL-CIO, a labor union

• They view taking down NAFTA as one of their priorities because:

o The U.S. lost tons of jobs and wage is suppressed

o The trade deficit with Mexico almost quadrupled.

o The U.S. – Mexico wage gap widened

Interest Groups (Pro-NAFTA)

• The USA*NAFTA• A large number of companies and trade

associations created this umbrella group, which in turn hired the Wexler group to run a approval campaign for NAFTA.

• Anti-NFATA PACs, however, outcontributed pro-NFATA PACs 2:1

• North American SuperCorridor Coalition(NASCO)

Political Parties’ Positions

• Republicans --- generally for, voted 132 – 43 for NAFTA

• Democrats --- generally against, voted 102 - 156

• Reform Party --- against. Ross Perot referred to NAFTA as a “giant sucking sound" of U.S. jobs moving south of the border Phillips, Gretchen and Tower, Edward. “Organized Labor’s

CampaignContributions after the NAFTA Vote:

Rhetoric or Retribution?”. Duke.edu. 24 Sep. 2003. 11 Nov. 2010

Recent Developments• 2009 in Dallas, Texas, the Free Trade Commission

Meeting established an ad hoc to work group to work with FTC and CEC.

• They also agreed to create the Working Group on Communications and Outreach “to promote greater understanding of the NAFTA and its benefits”

• 2009, arguments as to whether to reopen the treaty and renegotiate it(one of the major stated goals of President Obama during his campaign).

• Whether or not to “Buy American” policies are in violating the NAFTA agreements

Videos

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBmFrYWPoG8 Anti NAFTA superhighway video

• http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/president-bush-on-nafta/3xg25io5 Geroge W. Bush's pro NAFTA speech