Todd Bensman, a senior national security fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, said President Donald Trump’s 25 percent tariff threat on Mexican imports was a “highly effective” strategy that should have been implemented by prior administrations “for years” as a way to push Mexico to cooperate with border security efforts.
On Monday, Trump announced that he and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum participated in a “very friendly conversation” in which the pair negotiated a deal which will see Mexico supply 10,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border to “stop the flow of fentanyl and illegal migrants” into the U.S. in exchange for Trump pausing the anticipated 25 percent tariffs on Mexican imports for a one month period.
Bensman said he wasn’t “surprised” Mexico caved to Trump’s demands, given that Mexico’s largest trading partner is the U.S.
“Mexico is extremely sensitive to tariffs. Their economy relies very heavily on U.S. exports – especially their agricultural products. All you have to do is care enough about yourself and your own economy, you don’t have to care about us. Just care about yourselves and you’ll do the right thing by us. That’s how it works. It’s real politic, hardball stuff, but it was necessary. That’s going to fix a lot of problems down there. No question at all,” Bensman explained on Monday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show.
Bensman went on to note, however, that Trump’s leveraging of trade is a tactic that has been historically successful and should have been implemented in years prior by other administrations.
“Nothing prompts action like saving your national economy – we just saw that work with Colombia,” Bensman explained.
“All of this is the kind of stuff that all U.S. administrations should have been doing for years and years. It’s highly effective. It always works. There’s just not a lot of complexity here. Tell a country there’s repercussions for defying the United States on central national security and public safety threats to us. We’re not just asking you to cry uncle for no reason. There’s a good reason in our national interest to be demanding these things and making you do them if you don’t like it,” Bensman added.
Tune in to Hour 2 of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show! https://t.co/KMxyDNOQqo
— MichaelPatrick Leahy (@michaelpleahy) February 3, 2025
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
