    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [April 21, 2008]
    [Pages 540-542]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Discussion With President Felipe de Jesus Calderon
    Hinojosa of Mexico in New
    Orleans
    April 21, 2008

        President Bush. Mr. President, thank you very much. We just had a
    very long and really good discussion on a variety of issues. U.S.-
    Mexican relations are very important, and sometimes we in America take
    those relations for granted. But we share a large border; we share the
    same values. We've got people on both sides of the border who've got
    friends and family members. And it is fitting that you and I have this
    kind of conversation.
        I want to congratulate you and thank you for your strong leadership.
    I appreciate the fact that you inherited a very difficult situation.
    One, you inherited, you know, high demand for drugs in the United
    States. In other words, people are using drugs, and therefore, people
    are supplying drugs. And it's caused difficult security problems in your
    country, and you've responded aggressively. And I think it's in our
    interests that we fund the joint initiative. We got to work hard on our
    side to make sure that we reduce our drug use and, at the same time,
    work with you in the close coordination to defeat these drug
    traffickers.
        We need to do--continue our initiative that we started with--during
    your administration, Mr. President, on dealing with arms trafficking--
    arms coming from the United States into Mexico. We've got a strategy in
    place, and we're now beginning to implement it. Congress has a chance to
    send a strong statement that we want to work in a collaborative fashion
    with the money that's going to be in the supplemental. My hope, of
    course, is they fully fund the program, and they fund it--a strategy
    that will be effective.
        We talked about trade and how trade has been beneficial to both our
    countries. When you and I grew up in our respective

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    countries, the border region of Mexico and the United States was very
    poor. And today, when you go down there, there's prosperity on both
    sides of the border. A lot of that has to do with trade. Our trade has
    tripled, and our economies have grown. And this has been a very positive
    aspect for both our countries. And so we're going to talk about that, of
    course, with the Canadian Prime Minister in
    our dinner tonight.
        But we also talked about the need to have a successful Doha round.
    We talked about climate change. We talked about a lot of issues and--but
    that's what you expect friends to do. So I welcome you.

    [At this point, President Calderon Hinojosa spoke in Spanish, and his
    remarks were translated as follows.]

        Interpreter. [Inaudible]
        President Bush. I understood every word. [Laughter]
        Interpreter. Thank you very much, Mr. President. Thank you so much
    for your hospitality and for very long and productive discussion we had
    today. As is fitting for the relationship that Mexico and the United
    States enjoy, we have been able to discuss a long list of issues today,
    because we have a very complex and rich relationship.
        We talked first of all, as President Bush said, about security. We
    talked about security along our common border. We talked about the
    common strategies that we are implementing in order to fight the double
    scourge of organized crimes and drug trafficking.
        President Calderon Hinojosa. The common enemy.
        Interpreter. Common enemy. Thank you, Mr. President.

    [The interpreter continued to translate President Calderon Hinojosa's
    remarks as follows.]

        Interpreter. We discussed the Merida Initiative, a very important
    initiative that will allow a common strategy that will benefit families
    on both sides, on the side of Mexico and on the side of the United
    States.
        I also want to express my appreciation for the work the U.S.
    Government has begun on the problem of arms trafficking. We know that
    this is a complex issue. We know there is much to be done, but a very
    important first step has already been made in that direction.
        We also discussed the defense of the Mexican administration, of the
    rights of our Mexican citizens. And we have also discussed the issue of
    trade and how trade is benefiting both of our peoples. And we have
    discussed the issue of trade and its benefits. I think that I have made
    it very clear that as far as I'm concerned, trade is an issue that
    benefits both sides greatly. It is something that generates jobs both on
    the U.S. side and on the side of Mexico. We have seen an enormous
    increase in benefits for consumers as a result of trade as well. We see
    that the quality of products in general has gone up as a result of
    increased trade.
        And I stress this issue because recently NAFTA has come under
    criticism, and I do not believe that people are realizing how many
    benefits NAFTA has brought both to the United States and to Mexico. I
    can say that hundreds of thousands of jobs have been created on both
    sides of the border. As far as Mexico is concerned, this increase in
    jobs has also led to a direct decrease in the amount of immigration from
    Mexico to the United States. It has generated growth, it has generated
    jobs, and it is decreasing the flow of immigration.
        And we have discussed the defense of the rights of Mexican citizens
    and the need to increase the way we watch over those rights. This has
    been--is a very important issue for my administration. We need to
    continue working on an agenda to find a comprehensive solution for that.
    I understand that the United States is going through an electoral
    process, and we respect that process, of course. But I do want to point
    out that it's very important for

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    my administration, for us to find a solution to this issue, and a
    solution that will not just find a way to deal with the immigration
    problem, but one that will do so with respect and responsibility.
        We also discussed the concern that we have with regard to the
    increase of prices of foods around the world and the public policies
    that are involved in finding alternative fuels and how all of this goes
    into the mix. We need to face the problem of economies all around the
    world who have not been able to deal with this problem very well. In
    Mexico, we have been able to find solutions, but we are concerned about
    the situation of other countries in Latin America that are not faring
    quite as well.
        And finally, I simply want to say how happy I am to be in the United
    States. And I don't want to get ahead of myself, but tonight I will be
    extending an invitation, hopefully, to the next President of the United
    States to visit us in Mexico next year for this event. And of course,
    President Bush will always be a welcome visitor in Mexico.
        President Calderon Hinojosa. Thank you.
        President Bush. Thank you, sir.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:40 p.m. at the Windsor Court Hotel. In
    his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada. The
    Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language
    transcript of these remarks.