Bluffing at the Border

The first 50 of as many as 1,500 refugees from a notorious caravan making its way through Mexico toward the United States have reached the border. According to some reports, they are claiming asylum. In a sense, they are all but saying they believe President Donald Trump’s tough talk about illegal immigration and securing the border was just talk — and they are calling what they see as a bluff.

Mexico, with its officials standing aside, also seems to think the same thing. President Trump responded by declaring that he might include demands on immigration and border security in the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Specifically, Mexico may be forced to act against migrants passing through that country to the United States to keep NAFTA. This is leverage — the Art of the Deal as applied to NAFTA.

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