Mexico: the challenges ahead: can a new president boost his nation's economy and stem the tide of illegal immigration to the United States?

• Author: McKinley, Jr., James C.
• Position: INTERNATIONAL - Felipe Calderon

Almost a year into his six-year term, Mexico's President Felipe Calderon is grappling with a tough set of issues, none more pressing than illegal immigration to the United States and the broader question of how Mexico deals with its northern neighbor.

"For Mexico, the relationship with the U.S. is its most important foreign-policy relationship," says David Shirk, a political science professor at the University of San Diego.

Every year, more than 400,000 Mexicans illegally cross into the U.S., most in search of work and a better life for themselves or their families back home. With more than 6 million Mexicans now in the U.S. illegally, how they are treated, and their ability to earn money and send it to their families, is of great concern to Mexicans and their leaders.

Mexican immigrants in the U.S. send $20 billion back to Mexico every year. In addition, their absence takes some of the pressure off Mexico's economy, which has not been growing fast enough to provide enough good-paying jobs for Mexico's people. Together, this gives the Mexican government little incentive to make it harder for its citizens to sneak across the border.

THE IMPACT OF 9/11

As Washington takes steps to tighten up the border and crack down on illegal immigrants already in the U.S., President Calderon has stepped up his criticism of American policy. In a speech last month, he protested the "persecution and the vexing treatment" of Mexican workers in the U.S.

Mexicans had high hopes when President Bush was elected seven years ago. Bush had been the Governor of Texas, a border state with close economic and cultural ties to Mexico. And Bush had long favored a guest-worker program that would allow Mexicans to enter the U.S. legally to work.

But the post-9/11 emphasis on security in the U.S., along with concerns about the impact of immigrants on the American economy, scrambled the picture. This summer, Congress failed to pass an immigration bill that would have put many illegal immigrants on a path to U.S. citizenship. In recent months, Washington has authorized the construction of 700 miles of fence along the border (bringing the total to about 800 miles of the 2,000-mile border); increased border patrols; and ordered tougher steps against employers who hire illegal workers. And as the 2008 U.S. presidential election heats up, immigration has become a key issue.

Calderon is also wrestling with other problems. He has launched an aggressive anti-crime campaign, sending...