Mexico sends U.S. diplomatic note criticizing plan for border fence

The Associated Press reports that Mexico sent a diplomatic note to the U.S. government saying a plan to build hundreds of miles (kilometers) of fencing on the border to block illegal immigrants would damage relations. President-elect Felipe Calderon urged U.S. officials to reconsider the border plan, saying one “could stop more migrants with a kilometer of new roads and development (in Mexico) than with a wall.” In the letter sent Monday to the U.S. State Department, Mexico’s Foreign Relations Department called for comprehensive immigration reform to address the issue that has been a sticking point between the countries for years.  Click here for the full story.

Sounds like the border fence and an enforcement approach is not good for U.S./Mexican relations.

Netscape ran some interesting commentary on the AP story.   It begins like this:

Netscape Anchor Commentary Karina: This morning Netscape News asked two immigration experts to respond to this story. John Keeley is director of communications for the Center for Immigration Studies — a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit think tank devoted to the study of the impact of immigration on the United States, and an organization that has advocated for stricter border control for some time. We also spoke with Kevin Johnson, a professor at UC Davis and a contributor to the ImmigrationProf Blog.  Click here for the rest of the commentary and some heated exchanges among the readers.

KJ