CALEXICO: USPresident Donald Trump visited the Mexican border on Friday to deliver amessage to would-be illegal immigrants and asylum seekers: don't bother coming."The system is full and we can't take you anymore... Our country isfull," he said at a meeting with border patrol officers and otherofficials in Calexico, California. "So turn around, that's the way itis." Shortly after, Trump visited a section of recently refurbished borderwall - something he wants extended across far more of the US-Mexico frontier -and said illegal immigrants had previously been "pouring" in. TheCalifornia trip followed a retreat from earlier threats to close the border,which had sparked fears of serious economic damage.
Nevertheless,Trump sees his campaign against a "crisis" on the border as key tohis 2020 reelection bid, and his time in Calexico was meant to keep thatmessage in the headlines. Numbers of migrants and asylum seekers fleeingviolence in Central America have risen sharply, although there are enormouspolitical divides on whether this constitutes the "nationalemergency" that Trump has declared. Around 200 protesters, accompanied bya giant inflatable balloon depicting Trump as a baby, were waiting for thepresident in Mexicali, the town on the Mexican side of the frontier.
Waving US andMexican flags, the protesters carried signs with messages such as "Stopseparating families" and "If you build the wall, my generation willtear it down." On the US side, dozens of people lined the road thatTrump's motorcade took, demonstrating support for his policies. "Build thewall," said one placard. Before leaving Washington earlier Friday, Trumpsaid that his previous threats to shut down the border had been successful inpersuading Mexican authorities to clamp down by stopping migrants on theirjourney north. "Mexico, I have to say, has been very, very good... overthe last four days since I talked about shutting down the border," hesaid.
'Stay calm'
Trump reiteratedthat actually closing the border is not currently in the cards, but said hewill instead impose 25 percent tariffs on auto imports from Mexico if illegalmigration and drug smuggling are not controlled. Trump also said he could stillorder the border closed later. "I may shut it down at some point but I'drather do tariffs," he said.
While soundingtough, Trump's surprise shift this week to tariffs from the previous threat toclose the border is a major climb down. For days, the White House had beensignaling that he was serious about the threat and there was even speculationthat he might announce a closing during his Calexico trip. However, the ideacaused alarm among economists and Congress, including in Trump's RepublicanParty. Mexico is the third-largest US trading partner and any hold-ups atborder crossings would have an immediate impact on trade.
The tariffs ideais also causing confusion. On Thursday, Trump indicated there would be aone-year deadline for Mexico to improve the situation before tariffs kicked in.However, it was not clear if he meant that both for the drug smuggling andmigration, or whether he wanted the migration issue resolved immediately. OnFriday, the timing was no clearer. But he seemed to suggest that he might seekto punish Mexico at any time he thought the southern neighbor was not doingenough. "We're going to shut (the border) down if we have to. We going totariff the cars, Mexico, if we have to," he said.
It was alsounclear how such tariffs would fit into the countries' deeply intertwinedtrading relationship, which is governed by NAFTA, a free trade accord alsoincluding Canada that is due to be replaced by an updated version called theUSMCA. Leaders of the three countries signed the USMCA in November after morethan a year of negotiations. Trump said Friday that his tariffs would"supersede USMCA. It's a great deal, and it's very good for Mexico. Butthis will supersede USMCA." In Mexico City, President Andres Manuel LopezObrador urged investors to "stay calm." "Our relationship withthe government of the United States is very good," he said. - AFP