Salt Lake City – Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. looked across the banquet table Tuesday at Mexico’s president and proudly proclaimed in Spanish, “Mi amigo Vicente Fox,” eliciting cheers from about 500 area and Mexican business and civic leaders.
Fox kicked off a swing through three Western states Tuesday with a visit to Colorado’s next- door neighbor. But Colorado was not on the itinerary, despite being home to one of Mexico’s oldest consulates, having more than three times the number of Mexican residents than the Beehive State, and having a burgeoning trade partnership with Mexico of more than $1.4 billion just last year.
By comparison, Utah did about $350 million last year in trade with Mexico and is home to about 200,000 Mexicans, while Colorado has 700,000.
For Utah business leaders, getting Fox to drop by before traveling to Seattle and then Los Angeles was quite a coup.
“We’re not Denver, we’re not Phoenix, and we’re not Los Angeles – we’re a small market, but we were hungry and we were able to pull this off,” said Josie Valdez, former assistant director to the Utah Small Business Association.
Why not Colorado?
So why not Colorado, which has never hosted a visit by a sitting Mexican president?
Some Colorado business leaders believe Fox would not come to Colorado because of politicians like anti-illegal-immigration leader Tom Tancredo, saying that many Coloradans are not friendly to illegal immigrants and the idea of a visit by the Mexican president.
But they say it will be important for business leaders and politicians to woo Fox’s successor if the state hopes to continue building on economic relations with Mexico, Colorado’s second largest trade partner behind Canada.
“I think the whole issue of immigration, particularly with some of the opponents in this state, has something to do with Fox not coming to Denver, ever,” said Gil Cisneros, president and chief executive officer of the Chamber of the Americas in Denver. “I’d actually be embarrassed to have the president of Mexico here with the attitude some Coloradans have and their behavior.”
Visit scuttled by shooting
Utah has been relatively friendly to illegal immigrants. Despite being considered the most conservative state in the nation, Utah last year began allowing undocumented immigrants to drive legally with a “driving privilege card.”
It also allows them to attend any public university or community college and pay in-state tuition.
A year ago, Fox received several invitations to visit Colorado, including one to be a commencement speaker at the University of Denver and to speak at a gathering sponsored by the Chamber of the Americas.
A trip to Denver made it onto Fox’s agenda.
But plans for the visit were interrupted when Denver police officer Donnie Young was shot and killed and the suspect, Raul Gomez-Garcia, promptly made his way south of the border.
Tensions followed when Gomez-Garcia was apprehended in Mexico and questions arose about whether he would be extradited to face the death penalty.
Around that time, Gov. Bill Owens contacted Consul General Juan Marcos Gutierrez Gonzalez, Mexico’s top diplomat in Colorado, with news that it was probably not a good time for Fox to come.
“We agreed with Gov. Owens that it was probably not exactly the best time, or the best climate for a visit by Fox,” Gutierrez Gonzalez said. “I don’t think the lack of presence of President Fox in Colorado has harmed the relationship between Mexico and Colorado. … But I think the relationship could be better and a presidential visit enhances relations.”
Exports leap 23 percent
Indeed, trade between Colorado and Mexico has grown significantly the past few years, with consumers south of the border purchasing more and more Colorado computer products and cattle than ever.
In 2005, Colorado exported $849 million in products, a 23 percent increase over the previous year, according to the governor’s office of international trade.
The trade office is currently organizing a trade mission to Mexico’s Veracruz, which is fertile grounds for construction services and product exports.
Owens has made two trade missions to Mexico in the past, meeting with Fox during his last visit.
“As far as I know things are in great shape between Mexico and Colorado,” said Jim Reis, corporate executive office of Denver’s World Trade Center. “… The fact they were able to get him and we weren’t, well we need to focus now on getting his successor here.”
Fox decries fence idea
Tuesday evening, Fox called for a comprehensive solution to illegal immigration to the United States but criticized proposals for a fence along the two countries’ border.
Speaking to a gathering of the local Latino community, Fox called for “comprehensive” immigration reform that would allow for “legal, safe, orderly migration, respecting fully human rights and dignity.”
But, he added, “We don’t put up walls. That’s not the way you’re going to fix the problem.”
The Senate is struggling to pass an immigration-reform package while the House has approved a measure for a border fence and strict enforcement of immigration laws.
President Bush last week called for National Guard troops along the border to assist border patrol agents, as well as a fence along portions of the border.
The Salt Lake Tribune contributed to this report.
