Obama is in Mexico today to kick-off a mini trip which will wind up in the Carribean for the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.
Mexico has major problems right now with the war of the drug cartels on the government, so expect a lot of drug talk today, with emphasis on protecting the borders.
In his second big trip abroad since becoming U.S. president, Barack Obama arrives in Mexico on Thursday to show support for the Mexican government's efforts to fight a devastating drug war and boost security along the U.S. border.
Obama, who made his first foray onto the international stage in Europe earlier this month, will discuss energy and the economy with President Felipe Calderon in Mexico City before heading to Trinidad and Tobago for the Summit of the Americas on Friday.
White House officials played up the symbolism of the stop in Mexico, which is struggling to contain unprecedented criminal violence and combat a drugs war that is spilling over into the United States.
Denis McDonough, the Director of Strategic Communications at the White House's National Security Council, said Obama's visit underscored U.S. support for its southern neighbor at the highest levels.
"It's designed to send a very clear signal to our friends in Mexico City that we have a series of shared challenges as it relates to the economy, as it relates to security, insecurity, the threat of violence, and the impact of drug trafficking on both our countries," he told reporters this week.
The Obama administration is tightening the U.S.-Mexico border to prevent trafficking of U.S. guns to Mexican cartels and is hoping to send Black Hawk helicopters to help Calderon defeat well-armed drug gangs that killed thousands last year.
Obama, a Democrat, hopes to improve relations with Mexico and other Latin American countries during his trip after a deterioration in relations that his advisers blame on Republican former President George W. Bush. read more here.....
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