Mexico and the United States
Definition Diplomatic relations between
neighboring countries
Despite President Jimmy Carter’s efforts to improve U.S. re-
lations with Mexico in the 1970’s, domestic and interna-
tional political issues divided the two countries. Much of
the ruling Institutional Revolutionar y Party in Mexico
distrusted the United States for controlling too much of the
Mexican economy and extracting too much of Mexico’s
wealth. U.S. president Ronald Reagan was eager to im-
prove these relations but had to overcome political tensions
that divided the two nations.
In the 1980’s, U.S. and Mexican policies conflicted
over several issues. One was foreign policy. The
United States government opposed left-leaning Cen-
tral American governments in an effort to contain
communism. While Mexico opposed communism, it
chose to support de facto rulers in Central America.
Domestic political issues in both the United States
and Mexico became international issues when the
Mexican economy collapsed in the early 1980’s and
both countries suffered increased unemployment.
Further, increased drug trade meant that the U.S.
would need more control over its southern border.
Bilateral Relations During the 1980’s, the Insti-
tutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) controlled the
Mexican presidency. This stability allowed the gov-
ernment to implement long-term policies. In an
effort to reform the Mexican economy, the admin-
istrations of José López Portillo and Miguel de la
Madrid Hurtado reformed fiscal policies and private-
ownership laws and initiated different forms of struc-
tural adjustment to conform to prevailing economic
theories. To liberalize the economy, the Mexican
government discontinued most government subsi-
dies to farmers. Along with economic restructuring
shocks, Mexico suffered from oil price fluctuations
in the early 1980’s that drastically affected its eco-
nomic planning.
In 1976, Mexico had discovered vast oil reserves
and began negotiations to build a U.S.-Mexico oil
pipeline. Mexico was to finance this pipeline, but it
suffered economic hardships from a drop in oil reve-
nue, owing to a decrease in world oil prices. In Au-
gust of 1982, the Mexican government announced
that it had depleted its foreign-exchange reserves,
and foreign investment disappeared from Mexico.
Rural and urban Mexicans suffered from this eco-
nomic downturn, and many fled to the United States.
At the same time, increased drug use and violence in
the United States led some to draw connections be-
tween illegal drugs and illegal immigrants.
State and federal officials, particularly from bor-
der states, demanded that the United States and the
Mexican governments stop the flow of illegal drugs
and immigrants. Two of the most outspoken U.S. of-
ficials were Senator Jesse Helms and Ambassador to
Mexico John Gavin. While Helms and Gavin chas-
tised the PRI for Mexico’s flagging economy, other
Republicans met with the main opposition to the
PRI, the National Action Party (PAN).
Both governments responded to the increase in
immigrants and drugs. President de la Madrid re-
sponded to U.S. pressure over the drug trade and in
1985 devoted twenty-five thousand regular army sol-
diers to disrupt narcotics networks. However, the
military was not immune to corruption, and the
drug trade continued. In 1985, U.S. Drug Enforce-
ment agent Enrique Camarena was abducted, tor-
tured, and killed by drug lords. The event was widely
covered by the U.S. media, and evidence suggested
that Mexican law enforcement officers collaborated
and were present at Camarena’s torture, further dis-
tancing the American people. In 1986, Helms held
hearings in the Senate over Mexican government
corruption. That same year, the Immigration Re-
form and Control Act was signed into law in the
United States to help deter illegal immigration by
making it illegal to hire undocumented workers.Foreign Relations In the early and mid-1980’s, the
United States and Mexico also clashed over foreign
policy. The Ronald Reagan administration opposed
leftist guerrilla movements and governments in Cen-
tral America, while the Mexican government sup-
ported governments in power, whatever their politi-
cal ideology. In particular, the U.S. and Mexican
governments disagreed over Guatemala, Cuba, El
Salvador, and Nicaragua. In 1983, Mexico, along
with Venezuela, Colombia, and Panama, formed
the Contadora Group, an organization working to
stabilize the region. The United States opposed the
Contadora Group because the organization opposed
unilateral action by the United States and because it
recognized the government of Nicaragua.
After heightened tensions through the mid-
1980’s, U.S. attention shifted away from Central636 Mexico and the United States The Eighties in America