<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><br class=""><div class=""><div style="font-size: 12.8px;" class=""><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-us-mexico-relationship/2017/02/03/174fc91a-e7ef-11e6-903d-9b11ed7d8d2a_story.html?utm_term=.a8836f5b0930" target="_blank" class="">https://www.washingtonpost.<wbr class="">com/opinions/the-us-mexico-<wbr class="">relationship/2017/02/03/<wbr class="">174fc91a-e7ef-11e6-903d-<wbr class="">9b11ed7d8d2a_story.html?utm_<wbr class="">term=.a8836f5b0930</a><br class=""></div><div style="font-size: 12.8px;" class=""><section id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-top-content" class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-sm-offset-1 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-lg-12 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-md-12 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-sm-10 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-md-offset-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-xs-offset-1 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-lg-offset-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-layout gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-xs-10" style="box-sizing: border-box; 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margin: 0px 0px 3px; font-family: franklinitcprobold; font-size: 16px; color: rgb(25, 85, 165);"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/letters-to-the-editor/2010/07/06/ABjQAIP_linkset.html" target="_blank" style="color: inherit; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration: none;" class=""></a></div><h1 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: postoniwide, georgia, serif; font-size: 48px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; line-height: 1.1em; color: rgb(42, 42, 42); display: inline-block; word-spacing: -0.02em;" class="">The U.S.-Mexico relationship</h1><div class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-clear" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both;"></div></div></div></div></div></section><section id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-main-content" class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-lg-8 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-md-8 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-xs-offset-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-md-offset-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-lg-offset-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-xs-12 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-xl-9 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-sm-offset-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-layout gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-col-sm-12" style="box-sizing: border-box; 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border-bottom-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; float: left; width: 590.328px; padding: 0px;"><div id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-pb-article-body-author-modals" style="box-sizing: border-box;" class=""></div><div id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-article-body" class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-article-body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; color: rgb(17, 17, 17); overflow: visible; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 1440px;"><div class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-horizontal-photo gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-modal-0 gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-inline-content gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-inline-photo gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-inline-photo-normal" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px 0px 12px; border-top-width: 0px;"><a name="m_6829182469686311578_5869d41792d6ebd65da66bc5bf69225e09764199" style="color: inherit; box-sizing: border-box;" class=""></a><img class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-courtesy-of-the-resizer gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-zoom-in gmail-a6T gmail-CToWUd" src="https://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_1484w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2017/01/25/National-Enterprise/Images/2017-01-25T033547Z_1348502271_RC1B89A9A640_RTRMADP_3_USA-TRUMP-MEXICO.jpg?uuid=igE5_uMvEeakUxnsSz0Jug" tabindex="0" style="box-sizing: border-box; border: 0px; width: 590.328px;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" class=""><span class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-pb-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; font-family: franklinitcprolight, helveticaneue, 'helvetica neue light', 'helvetica neue', helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; line-height: 1.25em; color: rgb(110, 110, 110); margin-top: 4px;">A U.S. Border patrol agent opens a gate on the fence along the Mexico border on Jan. 17. (Tomas Bravo/Reuters)</span></div><div class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-pb-sig-line gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-hasnt-headshot gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-is-not-column gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-has-0-headshots gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-hasnt-bio" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 25px; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.1em;"><span class="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-pb-timestamp" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.1em; font-family: franklinitcprolight, helveticaneue, 'helvetica neue light', 'helvetica neue', helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; color: rgb(170, 170, 170); white-space: nowrap; padding-right: 5px; display: inline-block;">February 3 at 4:46 PM</span></div><article style="box-sizing: border-box;" class=""><div style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; font-family: georgia; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px auto 18px; max-width: 100%;" class=""><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div><div style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; font-family: georgia; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px auto 18px; max-width: 100%;" class=""><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div><p id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-U1180131667631465B" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; font-family: georgia; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px auto 18px; max-width: 100%;" class="">In his Jan. 29 op-ed, “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ernesto-zedillo-mexico-can-thrive-without-trump/2017/01/27/0c873fee-e4ad-11e6-a453-19ec4b3d09ba_story.html?utm_term=.c1d0b47dddde" id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-U11801316676314QQH" shape="rect" title="www.washingtonpost.com" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(25, 85, 165); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration: none; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(213, 213, 213); zoom: 1; margin-bottom: 18px; line-height: 1.8em;" class="">Mexico can thrive without Trump</a>,” former Mexican president Ernesto Zedillo hit the nail on the head when he said that many U.S. firms are able to compete successfully around the globe “precisely because they are free to develop links along their supply chains in places such as Mexico — in this case thanks to NAFTA.” Mr. Zedillo did not say that U.S. companies’ comparative advantage in Mexico is based on low wages resulting from the suppression of labor rights. This is bad for Mexicans (according to official statistics, more than half the population lives in poverty), and it’s also bad for U.S. workers who face pressure to accept lower labor standards. The debate over renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement should focus on lifting up all working people on both sides of the border. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; font-family: georgia; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px auto 18px; max-width: 100%;" class=""><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;" class=""><b style="box-sizing: border-box;" class="">Manuel Pérez-Rocha</b>, Washington</strong></p><p id="gmail-m_6829182469686311578gmail-U1180131667631435F" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; font-family: georgia; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px auto 18px; max-width: 100%;" class=""><i style="box-sizing: border-box;" class="">The writer is an associate fellow<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" class=""> at the Institute for Policy Studies.</i></p></article></div></div></section></div></div></body></html>