Border BFFs: Obama, Peña Nieto Bond as Agendas Remain Suspect
While running for the Mexican presidency, former State of Mexico Gov. Enrique Peña Nieto was criticized for being simply a pretty face from a notoriously corrupt party who couldn’t remember the names of books he read or name the price of tortillas.
Today, the president-elect came to Washington and easily bonded with President Obama.
Peña Nieto and his first-lady-in-waiting, telenovela star Angelica Rivera, got to mingle with some of the town’s power brokers in advance of his Saturday inauguration, which will be attended by Vice President Biden. “We only send the vice president to inaugurations when the country is really at the top of the list in importance to us,” Obama quipped, eliciting a cackle from Biden.
“I’m very confident that I’m going to establish a strong personal as well as professional relationship with the president-elect, who I know has an outstanding reputation for wanting to get things done,” Obama said before their meeting.
Peña Nieto nodded appreciatively as Obama referred to Mexico as “a very important multilateral, multinational leader on a whole range of issues from energy to climate change” and noted “the incredible contribution that Mexican-Americans make to our economy, our society, and to our politics.”
“And just as President-elect Peña Nieto’s reform agenda is of great interest to us because what happens in Mexico has an impact on our society, I know he’s interested in what we do as well on issues like comprehensive immigration reform,” Obama said. “And I’ll be sharing with him my interest in promoting some issues that are important to the United States, but ultimately will be important to Mexico as well.”
Obama congratulated his counterpart on an “outstanding victory.” Peña Nieto won with just 38 percent of the vote in a face-off with two challengers.
“I of course wish you great success and I know you have a great task before you, but I know, I trust that you will be doing a wonderful job,” Peña Nieto gushed in his remarks. “…I feel so pleased to be able to have Vice President Biden represent you in Mexico.”
“We were both congressmen — legislators, as we say in Spanish — in our respective congresses in our own countries. And this means we’re very sensitive to the needs of our peoples,” he continued.
“In terms of the reform for migration, the migration reform, we do have to tell you that we fully support your proposal, sir, for this migration reform. More than demanding what you should do or shouldn’t do, we do want to tell you that we want to contribute. We really want to participate with you. We want to contribute towards the accomplishment, so that of course we can participate in the betterment and the well-being of so many millions of people who live in your country and who are also participating.”
As if underlining the real challenges faced by the leaders mugging for the cameras was the grim news this morning that Maria Santos Gorrostieta, a 36-year-old mayor who had survived two assassination attempts from drug cartels, had been kidnapped while driving her daughter to school and found stabbed, burned, and beaten five days later.
Since President Felipe Calderon declared war on the cartels upon taking office six years ago, two dozen mayors have been among the tens of thousands murdered. Peña Nieto’s PRI party, which ruled Mexico for 71 years before Vicente Fox’s victory in 2000, kept drug violence under control by playing the cartels’ game (and allegedly pocketing the benefits).
In a June hearing of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) warned of a “potential crossroads” in the war on drugs with Peña Nieto’s election.
“While in power, the PRI minimized violence by turning a blind eye to the cartels. The current president, Felipe Calderon, has changed that strategy and aggressively confronted organized crime,” Sensenbrenner said. “Mr. Nieto does not emphasize stopping drug shipments or capturing kingpins. He recently told the New York Times that, while Mexico would continue to work with the United States, it should, quote, ‘should not subordinate to the strategies of other countries.’”
“He further emphasized that his priority would be a reduction in violence, not a dismantling of criminal organizations,” the chairman added. “By all accounts, this sounds like a reversion to the PRI policies of old.”
Peña Nieto said today his government “has set out to reduce the violence situation in our country.”
“We have the will to have cooperation, efficient cooperation with respect, respect for our sovereign states,” he said. “And of course in terms of the border, we want our border to be a safe, modern, connected border, legal border — that’s exactly what we’ve set out to accomplish.”
The president-elect told CNN that the biggest problem between U.S. and Mexico right now is the need “to build a greater trust in our relationship.”
“My purpose, then, is to create a relationship, to build a relationship based on trust, a relationship that would be positive, constructive, that would allow us to understand the world affairs and the world matters that both peoples have to face,” Peña Nieto said. “And based on this agreement, we’ll reach a relationship of brotherhood.”
Peña Nieto also met with lawmakers including Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).
“I found my discussion with President-elect Nieto very encouraging. I believe he is strongly committed to strengthening the relationship between our two countries and specifically with Texas and the other U.S. states bordering his country,” Hutchison said. “I take it as a good sign that President-elect Nieto has signaled that one of his top priorities is to strengthen the economic, social and cultural bonds shared by our two nations.”
It was no accident that Hutchison and another retiring border senator, Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), took the opportunity today to introduce a bill “to get the ball rolling” on a legislative DREAM Act alternative.
The ACHIEVE Act, under development for more than a year, would put in place a special visa system for young people brought to this country illegally before age 14 (and who are under 28 years old) who intend to pursue a technical or college degree, or serve in the U.S. military.
The first step, a W1 visa, would be granted to students for six years or military members for four years. After attaining a degree or completing service, a W2 visa allowing four years of legal work status would be granted. Then a W3 non-work visa would be eligible for renewal every four years if applicants have followed all the terms of the program.
McCain and Rubio were also instrumental in drafting the proposal.
“This doesn’t change the law as it is today in that if they decide they want a green card or they want to get into the citizenship track, they could do that. Under today’s law there is no change in the requirements,” Hutchison said at a press conference with Kyl this morning. “They will not get in front of the line. They will get in the back of the line. They’re not kept from getting that citizenship track nor are they given a preference in that citizenship track.”
“We’re going to have to count on people like Senator McCain and Senator Rubio and others who have an interest in this issue next year because neither of us are going to be here. And I confess to you, that’s another reason we decided to go ahead and file this legislation now,” Kyl said, acknowledging it wouldn’t likely come up in the lame-duck session. “…We have to have a discussion that is sensible, that is calm, that discusses all of the different aspects of the issue.”
He accused Obama of “violating” his oath of office by issuing the directive earlier this year to waive immigration enforcement on DREAM Act eligible students.
“Those of us who strongly believe in the rule of law believe that in our country if you don’t like the law, change it or seek to change it. Don’t violate it,” Kyl said. “For a civilian, that’s called civil disobedience. For the president, it’s called violating your oath of office and we don’t think it’s a good idea for the president to be put in the position where he says, ‘The only way that I can help these people is to not enforce law that Congress passed and one of my predecessors signed.’”
Kyl mentioned Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who won election to Kyl’s seat, as another potential Republican who could pick up the torch in the 113th Congress.
“One of the things that we tried to avoid was pure, raw political power, ramming something down somebody’s throat,” Kyl said of the bill. “That doesn’t work when you’re trying to get compromise.”
Over in the House, a Flake-sponsored bill directing the Department of Homeland Security to create for congressional approval a strategy for gaining operational control of the northern and southern U.S. borders passed.
“It’s going to be impossible for Congress to tackle immigration reform without achieving operational control of our southern border, and the federal government can’t achieve operational control if they aren’t even using it as a metric,” said Flake.
What in the world is the point of this article? It seems nothing more than a meander through the worst parts of the R immigration zeitgeist.
On page 1 there are the classes: There’s illegal immigration, there’s scary Mexican drugs and criminals, and there is Obama (he of the uber-foreign moniker) meeting with foreign sounding person. But then in page 2 there are a bunch of R leaders meeting with that same person with the foreign name, and sounding suspiciously like they aren’t demonizing Mexican immigrants and are pushing for immigration reform.
Will the R party dash itself on the rock of immigration yet again? It’s sure looking like it, if Jekyll and Hyde articles like this one are any indication.
Have you been smoking weed?
And if these illegal’s were white Europeans with doctorates in engineering the Dem’s would be screaming bloody murder about the open borders.
You are mixing up your talking points. The Ds would welcome PhD immigrants, did you forget that folks with post-college education are pretty overwhelmingly D voters?
I saw a bumper sticker the other day that said;
Actually, I often say
I just thought you should know.
clear ether
eon
Increased cooperation with Mexico reads a lot like the CFR North America Union where the US provides for Mexico’s poor in health care, jail/court costs, anchor babies, IRS tax return payments, government housing, and placing said illegal Marxists on the voter rolls to vote for more Marxism.
The CFR North America Union is region 1of the WTO. It includes Canada. We are watching region 4 be born with buckets of human blood. Region 4 is known to the masses as the Arab spring.
Leatherneck, you are precisely correct. Under the guise of syrupy words and smiles, all manner of mischief is borne. And it appears that pretty boy Nieto will bond very closely with his mirror image Radical-in-Chief, albeit under cover.
And it is not as if a country, which is basically in the grip of drug runners/cartels, can be a viable partner for anything, other than mischief. So it surely becomes more than problematic, when a vacuous leader from a corrupt party is at its helm.
So it will likely be that illegal immigration will be ratcheted up on steroids, during the next 4 years. O M G!! And no one should expect Nieto to twist Washington’s arms re Fast & Furious, as he should.
And the proof will be in the above. For if Fast & Furious is not central to Nieto, then Americans have more than enough reason to be worried – http://adinakutnicki.com/2012/10/03/when-does-a-pile-up-of-dead-bodies-not-lead-to-criminal-indictments-hint-when-perpetrated-by-the-obama-regime-commentary-byadina-kutnicki/
It is entirely possible that a quid pro quo has already been realized – you stay off Fast & Furious….and our common cause (of making illegals legal) will come to fruition. Understood? Comprende?
left out top portion….
New Presidents always say this kid of crap.
They are like school kids who promise not to get each other in trouble and then only speak well of each other.
The Dirty Little “Secret”: The reason that politician supporters of Open Borders want it is so that they and/or their campaign contributors can have serf labor. They would probably prefer actual out-and-out slaves but that is illegal. Open Borders Democrats, like Obama, also want it so that those who are now illegal can become legal and vote for them, if they aren’t voting for them already.
Does anyone think that any of these Open Borders politicians actually care one wit otherwise for the illegals. Does anyone think that any of the Open Borders politicians are going to invite these Mexican Indios and Mezclados to join their elite/exclusive golf clubs? Come to live in their gated communities, other than as servants? Invite them to their yachts, other than as low paid deck hands and/or servants? Invite them to their cocktail parties? Introduce them to their daughters?
The big majority of the Mexicans who have come here/will come here are Indios and Mezclados, not the Spanish descendant fair-skinned ruling class of Mexico. This is a form of ethnic cleansing by Mexico’s ruling class. So these Open Borders politicians are aiding and abetting and facilitating ethnic cleansing. If the U.N. were not such a joke, they would all be standing trial for trying to reintroduce a form of latter-day-slavery in the United States and for the mass ethnic cleansing of Mexico.
No, but their children raised here, attend Kipp Schools, enroll in ABC (A Better Chance), Prep for Prep, Inroads, and move on to attend Darthmouth, Middlebury, Pomoma, Oberlin, Bates, UC Berkely, and later graduate schools, and will most surely vote progressive or democratic, WILL.
I have lived in Mexico for 26 years, and Pena Nieto, like Obama is for the USA, is a complete disaster for the people of this nation. The man is corrupt, cynical, and just plain stupid. Like Obama he knows how to play politics, dirty politics. Like Obama’s election and…gulp….re-election, the most low-info voters, ie. the stupidest voted for him. We are all headed up Shit Creek with no paddle.
The fact that Nieto uses the term “migration” is noteworthy. Since “migration” means a permanent move, usually for the purpose of displacing the existing population in favor of a new one.
It’s easy to say that anyone who takes groups like La Raza’s rhetoric about “Reclaiming the Stolen Territories” seriously is a right-wing conspiracy theorist. However, such attitudes are considered legitimate in Mexico. I suspect largely due to the same sort of “territorial envy” which is a strong element of the anti-Israel mindset in the Arab world in general and the Palestinian “movement” in particular;
The problem with this is, of course, that the territory the “Reconquistas” want “back” never belonged to Mexico to begin with; it was Apache, Comanche, etc., territory, not Aztec or Inca, until the Spanish came. Bringing with them the noble/peasant dichotomy and hidalgo culture which still maintains in Mexico, as well as most points south of the Rio Grande, and is the actual reason that the region pretty much remains an economic and social basket case.
The moral being what I call the Law of Belief;
AGW, “Stolen Territories”, alien abduction. Just because an idea is crazy doesn’t mean people won’t adopt it if they see an advantage in doing so. Said advantage usually boiling down to power and influence, real or perceived.
Importing Mexico’s “excess” population to the U.S. may have temporary economic and political advantages for both the Mexican government (more money coming in, excess workers and “dissidents” going elsewhere), and American “progressives” (more “D” voters, more welfare recipients, and another exploitable minority group to beat everyone else over the head with).
But it will not solve Mexico’s problems, which are cultural and political.
If Mexico had paid more attention to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison than it did to the likes of Antonio Lopez’ de Santa Anna, this entire problem probably wouldn’t exist. But Mexico didn’t, and now we have ambitious and fundamentally unprincipled politicians on both sides of the border seeking to use the results for political profit and (I suspect) personal gain. Namely, personal power.
This will not end well, for anybody.
clear ether
eon
I tend to take people at their word. When La Raza says they want blanket amnesty because we stole their land, I believe that’s what they believe. When they band together with dozens of other Hispanic political groups and push a political agenda using the coarsest of racialist rhetoric, I assume they choose to send those messages. When they push an educational agenda that is frankly anti-white and anti-American, I accept that their stated views are their views on the very taxpayers subsidizing their educational agenda.
There’s nothing conspiratorial about it, unless you’re trying to convince yourself that, despite what they say, they mean something else.
As a European Jew once famously said, when somebody says they want to kill you, believe them.
The Industrialization of Mexico saw the same displacement of rural agricultural peasants as all nations that industrialized….excepting they moved to the US in large numbers instead of just Mexican cities.
– Everything free in A-mer-i-ca!
Just as a side point here, the Republican Dream Act is a pretty stupid business. They are not going to outdo the Democrats at being pro Hispanic or pro immigration, so there are no votes in it for them. Meanwhile they are representing conservative interests so poorly that a portion of those who would naturally vote Republican are starting to stay home on election day.