Less than 24 hours after the overwhelming victory of the first woman elected to the presidency of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, President Joe Biden called her by phone to congratulate her and the Mexican people.
In a historic vote due to its high participation, Mexicans voted overwhelmingly for the continuity of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s project.
“The two leaders emphasized their commitment to continuing the strong and collaborative partnership that will promote democracy, security and prosperity in both countries,” the White House reported.
The president-elect’s response was equally terse. “In a friendly and cordial manner, we both expressed our desire to continue strengthening the Mexico-United States relationship in the field of trade and friendship between our peoples, with respect for our sovereignties,” she indicated.
But the road to a smooth relationship between these two neighbors is always littered with stones. Not only because of the reality of it being an election year in the United States, but because the bilateral agenda is saturated with challenges that escape quick or simple solutions.
On the one hand, an eventual victory for Donald Trump in the November 5 elections has the potential to detonate new irritants between the two countries.
Trump threatens to unleash the largest hunt for undocumented immigrants in the history of the United States, which would include the mobilization of the armed forces to carry out raids and expulsions.
Led by Trump, some Republicans in Congress are toying with the idea of sending special forces to Mexico to combat drug cartels and designating them as terrorist organizations.
At the same time, President Biden, concerned about one of his greatest vulnerabilities, the high level of disapproval of his policy to contain migratory flows between the United States and Mexico, announced radical measures against migrants to improve his chances of victory in November.
Biden will partially close the door to those requesting asylum between the entry points to Mexico if their number exceeds 2,500 people a day. This Executive Action is protected by the controversial presidential authority 212 (f), used by none other than Donald Trump to undertake his infamous “Travel Ban” and other draconian actions.
It is a carbon copy of one of the most controversial clauses of the bipartisan immigration initiative that was blown up by Trump and the Republicans.
Obviously, the success of this initiative depends on whether Mexico accepts the rejected applicants into its territory. Currently the quota accepted by the Mexican government is 30,000 people per month.
Migration frictions are just one of the challenges of a complex bilateral relationship. But at least there is a commitment from the current leaders in both countries to work cooperatively and respectfully. I hope that spirit is maintained beyond whoever occupies the leadership in each country, because we have no other choice.
