Staff Reports
In a bold move that is reminiscent of the Trump era, tariffs are back on the table, and Mexico is finally waking up from its Biden-induced slumber. The newly reinstalled administration has kicked off the tariff train with a hefty 25% tax on goods from both Mexico and Canada, alongside an additional 10% on Chinese imports. This drastic measure is all part of a long-standing promise to prioritize American jobs and protect the economy—an agenda that has fallen on deaf ears during the past four years of Democratic leadership.
A recent Chicago Council on Global Affairs poll confirms what Americans have known all along: protecting American jobs is a top priority, ranking right up there with national security. In stark contrast, the so-called policies of the Biden administration treated foreign relations, especially with Mexico, as some kind of diplomatic tea party. Sadly, the results of that approach have led to an influx of illegal immigration and devastating drug-related deaths in the United States.
After years of “talking and dialoguing,” Mexico’s leaders have been gifted a golden ticket to push their poor and desperate citizens across the U.S. border while the Biden administration looked the other way. The response from President Claudia Sheinbaum about engaging in dialogue instead of resorting to tariffs is the kind of naivety that has characterized the past few years. Her administration’s cavalier disregard for the 8 million illegal border crossings and the staggering toll of fentanyl deaths echoes the ignorance of a government that failed to protect its own people.
Victor Davis Hanson has rightly pointed out that after four years of lax policies, Mexico seems to have mistaken leniency for sovereignty, fully believing they can facilitate the illegal migration of their citizens while ignoring the drug crisis wreaking havoc across America. With over 75,000 American lives lost each year to fentanyl, largely trafficked from Mexico, these aren’t simply statistics—they’re an indictment of failed leadership on both sides of the border.
Mexico Gets a Wake-Up Call After Four Years of Biden Appeasementhttps://t.co/8RRmSLZYwG
— PJ Media (@PJMedia_com) February 2, 2025
Sheinbaum protests against tariffs, touting her government’s recent achievements in seizing a mere 40 tons of drugs, boasting about how it’s “making progress” in the fentanyl war. However, when looking at the 6 billion doses of fentanyl that were still intercepted at the border in just one year, it becomes evident that the problem remains not only persistent but also escalating. Meanwhile, a suggestion from critics to impose a 20% tax on money Mexican nationals send back home—totalling $63 billion—has merit. It’s a wake-up call for Mexico, as it would transfer accountability back to a country that has been skating on thin ice for too long.
While it’s true that tariffs alone won’t fix all the problems at the southern border, they are a significant signal that the days of appeasement and complacency are coming to an end. This is not just about protecting American shores; it’s about restoring a semblance of balance to a relationship that has been severely one-sided. The new administration’s approach underscores the urgency to reassert American interests, and the time has come for Mexico to realize that the previous laissez-faire attitude is officially gone.
