Tuesday, May 07, 2013

He couldn't have been talking about Mexico

President Obama went to Mexico last week and had negative things to say about his country's economy and immigration policy and lots of positive things to say about Mexico. But his student audience was wondering what country he was talking about.
Obama praised the open press and the growing middle class. A very sunny situation in Mexico.
But… LA Times
"How nice that he came to give inspiring speeches, but what's happening in Mexico is far from what he talked about today," said Jose Carlos Cruz, a 24-year-old graduate student in international relations who attended the speech. "A really good speech by President Obama, but what Mexico was he talking about?"
The Mexican economy has begun to slow, and the decrease in illegal immigration is more likely a result of demographic changes, the sluggish U.S. economy and the severe dangers of crossing Mexico than of any improvements inside Mexico.
… "Obama is fantastic, but I believe that today he was talking about another country, not ours," said Rosa Castro, 43, a college professor. "My question is: Who wrote Obama's speech? Enrique Peña Nieto's team?"
Middle class growing?

In his speech, Obama praised a growing middle class to which the majority of Mexicans belong. Although it is true that Mexico has a strong manufacturing base that has allowed many Mexicans to prosper, economists say the middle class has been stagnant for years. The World Bank says 49% of the population lives in poverty.
The photo: Plaza de la Constitucion in Mexico City from Wikipedia. Click to enlarge.

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