The Foreign Service Journal, October 2016

42 OCTOBER 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL consulates in the United States—in partnership with commu- nity organizations—hosted citizenship workshops this year for permanent residents. Many hope to vote in November as new U.S. citizens. Consular officials, reaffirming the principle of non- intervention, underscored that how U.S. citizens vote is entirely the decision of each individual. Mexican private-sector leaders Guillermo Güémez and Alberto Dana expressed concern that Trump’s anti-NAFTA cam- paign rhetoric is not supported by economic analysis and instead appeals to voters’ emotions. They urged Americans to analyze the economic benefits of the agreement to the U.S. economy and the potential costs of exiting. On the positive side, regional trade surged over the treaty’s first two decades, from roughly $290 billion in 1993 to more than $1.1 trillion in 2016. Canada and Mexico are the two largest destinations for U.S. exports, accounting for more than a third of the total. U.S. foreign direct investment in Mexico increased in that period from $15 billion to more than $100 billion. Some manufacturing jobs have moved to Mexico—but if the U.S. were to opt out of NAFTA, those jobs might move to Asia instead of the United States. Whatever the outcome of the 2016 election, the United States and Mexico must find ways to maintain their constructive and essential partnership. President Peña Nieto declared that the next U.S. president would find in Mexico “good faith in strengthening relations.” With so much at stake, Mexico will be watching our elections on Nov. 8 with passionate interest. n Whatever the outcome of the 2016 election, the United States and Mexico must find ways to maintain their constructive and essential partnership.