Judy Ley Allen México Centered

In February, “México Centered” host Tony Payan joined three other Baker Institute experts to explore President Donald Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on Mexican, Canadian, and Chinese goods and what they mean for U.S. industries and consumers — as well as our relationships with our largest trading partners. The conversation was moderated by John Diamond, director of the Baker Institute Center for Tax and Budget Policy.

Mexico was once one of the biggest leaders in artificial intelligence (AI) globally, but progress has since stalled. Now, there’s renewed hope: President Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office in October 2024, has created an Agency for Digital Transformation and Telecommunications (ATDT), and the topic is also receiving attention from the Mexican Congress.

On  Nov. 15, 2024, the Mexican government released its budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2025, which runs from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31. The government pledged to narrow its fiscal deficit from around 6% in 2024 to around 3% in 2025, and according to the budget proposal, there will be no additional taxes, and the economy will grow between 2% and 3% next year. Wit...

On the campaign trail, Mexico was very much in Donald Trump’s cross-hairs. Now that he’s set to return to office, his pledges — including mass deportation of undocumented immigrants, a 25% tariff on Mexican goods and services, and a “war on drug cartels” — could indeed become reality.

The Center for the United States and Mexico at Rice University’s Baker Institute stays abreast of the many issues affecting the binational relationship–including some issues that are not as intuitive and are often not in the media. One of these is artificial intelligence. To explore what AI can do to the U.S.-Mexico relationship - in academia, security, cyber...

Mexico’s sweeping overhaul of the country’s court system took effect last month, in the final weeks before President López Obrador handed the keys of the National Palace to his mentee and successor, President Claudia Sheinbaum. Mexico is now one of the few countries in the world that elects its judges, including at the Supreme Court level, by popular vote, ra...

International trade has flourished in recent decades. In the U.S., which is both the world’s largest importer and exporter of goods and services, trade has lowered the costs of everyday goods, raised the living standard, and fueled job growth. But it has also eliminated some jobs, mostly in manufacturing. As a result, support for free trade has declined. Today, American policymakers are embracing industrial policies, which are de...

Late last month, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced a “pause” in relations with the U.S. embassy. These latest tensions between the two countries came after U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar criticized López Obrador’s proposed judicial reforms, which include electing judges by popular vote. Salazar called this measure “a major risk to the functioning of Mexico’s democracy.”

When ...

In this month's episode of Mexico Centered, Tony Payan sits down with Carlos Moreno Jaimes, professor and researcher at ITESO Universidad Jesuita de Guadalajara, about voter attitudes in the Mexican and U.S. electorates and a recent survey he conducted to look at this issue.

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