It’s rare to see high-profile political figures standing up to Donald Trump. The president-elect spews bile and lies relentlessly but is rarely pulled up on it by anyone other than left-swaying voters on platforms like X. However, after Trump announced he was slapping a 25 percent tariff on all goods from Mexico and Canada and an “additional” 10 percent tariff on Chinese products in response to irregular border crossings and drug trafficking on Monday, Nov. 25, Mexico’s president has bitten back.
Claudia Sheinbaum wrote a letter to Trump informing him that much of what he said in his announcement was false and, therefore, the tariff on goods from Mexico was being introduced based on misinformation — something that’s characteristic of 90% of what Trump says and does.
Understandably, Sheinbaum’s letter is written in Spanish. Thankfully, David Adler, the Co-General Coordinator of the Progressive International organization, made the complete translation available on X, and his post can be read below.
In what Adler accurately described as a “brilliant, firm, and unflinching” letter, Sheinbaum corrects Trump on many of his claims. The letter begins in a tone-setting style by telling the president-elect, “You may not be aware that Mexico has developed a comprehensive policy to assist migrants from different parts of the world who cross our territory en route to the southern border of the United States.
As a result, and according to data from your country’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP), encounters at the Mexico–United States border have decreased by 75% between December 2023 and November 2024. Moreover, half of those who arrive do so through a legally scheduled appointment under the United States’ CBP One program. For these reasons, migrant caravans no longer arrive at the border.”
It continues with various additional corrections to the twice-indicted convicted felon’s lies and exaggerations and urges Trump to work with Mexico to fix the issues that do exist. Sheinbaum wrote, “What is needed is cooperation and mutual understanding to tackle these significant challenges.” The letter ends by saying, “I believe that dialogue is the best path to understanding, peace, and prosperity for our nations. I hope our teams can meet soon to continue building joint solutions.”
It was diplomatic, classy, no-nonsense, intelligent, and formidable, and it will be interesting to see how Trump reacts. One thing for sure, though, is that X users reacted brilliantly, praising Sheinbaum for putting Trump in his place.
Someone made a great point that it was so well written it might be too complicated for Trump to read. Let’s hope he handed it to an adult to simplify it for him.
Others took the opportunity to praise Sheinbaum for her strength, diplomacy, eloquence, and articulation in fearlessly addressing the president-elect.
Of course, some MAGAts couldn’t help but be their usual insulting and condescending selves.
Hopefully (though hope is probably futile regarding the Donald), Trump will respond positively to Sheinbaum’s letter and work with Mexico to improve the world. If he does that with more world leaders, putting his often empty words into action, he might actually become a force for good. We won’t hold our breath.
Published: Nov 27, 2024 04:45 am