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| Trump to Mexico: Take care of 'bad hombres' or US might | ||
| 2017-02-02 | ||
The excerpt of the call did not detail who exactly Trump considered "bad hombres," nor did it make clear the tone and context of the remark, made in a Friday morning phone call between the leaders. It also did not contain Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's response. Still, the excerpt offers a rare and striking look at how the new president is conducting diplomacy behind closed doors. Trump's remarks suggest he is using the same tough and blunt talk with world leaders that he used to rally crowds on the campaign trail. A White House spokesman did not respond to requests for comment. The Mexican government said the account was not accurate. The phone call between the leaders was intended to patch things up between the new president and his ally. The two have had a series of public spats over Trump's determination to have Mexico pay for the planned border wall, something Mexico steadfastly refuses to agree to. "You have a bunch of bad hombres down there," Trump told Pena Nieto, according to the excerpt given to AP. "You aren't doing enough to stop them. I think your military is scared. Our military isn't, so I just might send them down to take care of it." A person with access to the official transcript of the phone call provided only that portion of the conversation to The Associated Press. The person gave it on condition of anonymity because the administration did not make the details of the call public.
Mexico's foreign relations department denied that account, saying it "is based on absolute falsehoods," and later said the statement also applied to the excerpt provided to AP. "The assertions that you make about said conversation do not correspond to the reality of it," the statement said. "The tone was constructive and it was agreed by the presidents to continue working and that the teams will continue to meet frequently to construct an agreement that is positive for Mexico and for the United States." Trump has used the phrase "bad hombres" before. In an October presidential debate, he vowed to get rid the U.S. of "drug lords" and "bad people." "We have some bad hombres here, and we're going to get them out," he said. The phrase ricocheted on social media with Trump opponents saying he was denigrating immigrants. Trump's comment was in line with the new administration's bullish stance on foreign policy matters in general, and the president's willingness to break long-standing norms around the globe. The fresh fight with Mexico last week arose over trade as the White House proposed a 20 percent tax on imports from the key U.S. ally to finance the wall after Pena Nieto abruptly scrapped his Jan. 31 trip to Washington. The U.S. and Mexico conduct some $1.6 billion a day in cross-border trade, and cooperate on everything from migration to anti-drug enforcement to major environmental issues. Trump tasked his son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner — a real estate executive with no foreign policy experience — with managing the ongoing dispute, according to an administration official with knowledge of the call. At a press conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May last week, Trump described his call with Pena Nieto as "friendly." In a statement, the White House said the two leaders acknowledged their "clear and very public differences" and agreed to work through the immigration disagreement as part of broader discussions on the relationship between their countries. | ||
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #9 Mexican Government Calls Out AP Over Fake News (Trump Never Threatened to Invade Mexico) "“The assertions that you make about said conversation do not correspond to the reality of it,” the Mexican government said in a statement. “The tone was constructive … and it was agreed by the presidents to continue working and that the teams will continue to meet frequently to construct an agreement that is positive forMexico and for the United States.” The White House seemed pleased to have someone else calling out the U.S. media for a change. “Reports that the President threatened to invade Mexico are false. Even the Mexican government is disputing these reports,” a White House official said. The AP isn't the only one to have reported fake news about the call. According to the report, Mexican website Aristegui Noticias said Trump humiliated Nieto, an allegation that “is based on absolute falsehoods," Mexico’s foreign relations department said." |
| Posted by: Vast Right Wing Conspiracy 2017-02-02 12:35 |
| #8 According to a variety of sources (see Fausta's Blog), Nieto was helped considerably by the Juarez Cartel (Carrillo Fuente - CEO) in his election. There may be 'conflict of interest' at play. |
| Posted by: Mullah Richard 2017-02-02 11:24 |
| #7 Point of Order: Anyone have any good sourcing of this conversation. Too much bullshit being windrowed right now. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2017-02-02 11:04 |
| #6 #2 The Mexican gov't IS the 'big wig drug baron.' Tough choice for Pena Nieto: Political support from the cartels vs Make nice with the US where a good chunk of the Mex economy comes from. My guess is he will try to square the circle which will just piss off everyone. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2017-02-02 10:02 |
| #5 Gen. Pershing tried the equivalent in 1916 without significant success. It did however provide some real-world experience that arguably made the US able to win WW I (without US entry they might still be stalemated...) |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2017-02-02 09:55 |
| #4 There's someone who needs to be told, "you're fired!"....from a cannon. Time to break out a canary trap. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2017-02-02 08:09 |
| #3 Afghanistan with tacos. Would be a huge mistake to get involved. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2017-02-02 02:55 |
| #2 The Mexican gov't IS the 'big wig drug baron.' |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2017-02-02 01:32 |
| #1 Trump should play good cop and bad cop with the Mexican President while agreeing to let the US Special Forces (with air assets) conduct a few raids to take some of the big wig drug barons out. Once the cartels are leaderless the Mexicans can take over the war against them. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2017-02-02 01:28 |