Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross delivered President Trump’s get-tough message directly to Mexico’s minister of economy on Monday, telling her the administration is committed to imposing tariffs unless Mexico does more to stop illegal immigration.
The meeting, requested by the Mexican government, comes ahead of a critical week for Mexico.
Mr. Trump has said that without substantial progress he’ll impose a 5% tariff on June 10, then ratchet it up every month until it reaches 25%.
Some analysts have predicted Mr. Trump would back down, but Mr. Ross gave no sign of conciliation.
“I reiterated the president’s message that Mexico needs to do more to help the U.S. address immigration across our shared border,” the secretary said in a statement after meeting with Graciela Marquez, Mexico’s economic minister.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador dispatched top officials to Washington armed with a letter pleading for cooperation and long-term solutions such as nation-building in Central America as the solution to illegal immigration.
That’s not good enough for Mr. Trump, who says he wants to see immediate results.
“As a sign of good faith, Mexico should immediately stop the flow of people and drugs through their country and to our Southern Border. They can do it if they want!” he said on Twitter from London, where he was being welcomed by the queen.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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