Bryn Donovan
25 September 2018
AP Comp Gov
Memo #4
For the last several decades, Mexico has been working towards becoming a better democracy to support its citizens. The ousting of the PRI (Industrial Revolution Party) removed lots of corruption from the government. There are also more checks and balances that have been put in place by the legislative and judiciary branches that check the power of the president. Mexico’s massive strides forward have been due to bilateral trade deals, mostly between the United States and Mexico. The forming of NAFTA also allowed the Mexican economy to stabilize, which stopped the economic crisis in 1982. According to “Mexico Makes It” by Shannon O’Neill, the way for Mexico to continue to improve is through economic stability and trade deals with the United States.
On 27 August 2018, the President of the United States met with the Mexican President to discuss a new trade deal dubbed the “United States-Mexico Trade Agreement”. President Trump is threatening to leave Canada out of the deal because of tariffs that Canada has imposed on US goods. The New York Times quotes Trump saying that NAFTA has “bad connotations” and that he will negotiate with Canada if they will do it fairly.
Will economic stability be the quickest way for Mexico to become a world power?
The economic theory states that economic modernization is the key to modern states. O’Neill specifically mentions that “a democratic and safe Mexico would attract billions of dollars in foreign investment” (O’Neill 26). By increasing revenue into the country, Mexico can use this to decrease the amount of violence, improve public services, and help the middle class continue to grow. Mexico’s geopolitical identity is not set in stone, and with a stable economy, could challenge giants such as China, India, and the United States in the global economy.
O’Neill, Shannon. “Mexico Makes It.” 2013
Swanson, Ana, Katie Rogers, and Alan Rappeport. “Trump Reaches Revised Trade Deal With Mexico, Threatening to Leave Out Canada.” The New York Times. August 27, 2018. Accessed September 26, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/27/us/politics/us-mexico-nafta-deal.html.
