In this report, fellow Tony Payan examines three recent U.S. criminal cases involving high-ranking Mexican officials. These cases point to a new “policy” by Washington to use its long-arm jurisdiction to arrest, prosecute and punish Mexican officials who have committed crimes that harm U.S. interests, he writes.
In March 2023, four U.S. citizens were kidnapped at gunpoint in northern Mexico; two were found dead and two others were rescued following a manhunt. The incident quickly became an international crisis and renewed U.S. focus on violence south of the border. This conversation explores the binational relationship between the U.S. and Mexico and growing tensions regarding Mexico’s approach to clamping down on violence and crime.
As the tensions at the U.S.-Mexico the border continue, President Biden visited El Paso, Texas on January 8, 2023 to discuss his plan for clamping down on illegal immigration. We discuss the state of U.S. border policy, President Biden’s latest plans, and how the U.S. can mitigate the immigration crisis.
David M. Satterfield, Tony Payan, Kelsey NormanJanuary 26, 2023
Who is benefiting from Europe's skyrocketing natural gas prices? "Middle men” companies who buy natural gas or LNG in the U.S and sell LNG in Europe are receiving the windfall, write fellows Steven Miles and Anna Mikulska.
Gun shows are public gatherings where licensed gun dealers and private gun owners use formal and informal venues to exchange information or sell and buy firearms, accessories, and ammunition. A major challenge is that gun shows, unlike established business locations, can be considered gray zones where regulatory loopholes facilitate the movement of legal firearms to illegal domains both domestically and internationally.
Despite U.S. officials’ attempts to persuade Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to change course on his energy policy, which violates key provisions of the USMCA, his administration has not backed down, the authors write. They explain where the disputes between the U.S. and Mexico currently stand and what they mean for other aspects of the binational relationship.
By refusing to go along with an increased consumer subsidy fully available only for EVs and batteries produced in the U.S. with union labor, Sen. Manchin (perhaps with the assistance of Canada's government) has saved the U.S. government from what could have been a mortal blow to an integrated North American industry.
With conflict on two fronts, and natural gas squarely in the crosshairs, the US LNG industry will be needed to support our allies in both Europe and Asia this winter, write the authors.
Steven R. Miles, Gabriel Collins, Anna B. MikulskaAugust 18, 2022
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s investment policies, which aim to return Mexico to the protectionist, state-led policies of the 1960s and 1970s, seem almost certain to stagnate the country’s economy.
The author proposes a model that explains how stressors such as constant uncertainty and legal vulnerability can affect the mental health of undocumented immigrants — and how, paradoxically, they can also make migrant communities more resilient. Learn more in Current Opinion in Psychology.