President Sheinbaum said that Marco Rubio's first call as U.S. Secretary of State this week was to Mexico. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)
Two days after Donald Trump commenced his second term as United States president, Mexico’s relationship with the U.S. and the Trump administration’s plans were a key focus of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s morning press conference.
Toward the end of her Wednesday press conference, the president revealed that yet another constitutional reform proposal — more than a dozen have been approved in recent months — is ready to be submitted to Congress.
Foreign Affairs Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. (Gustavo Alberto/Cuartoscuro. Marco Rubio/Facebook)
Mexican government now in contact with Trump administration
Sheinbaum told reporters that Foreign Affairs Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente spoke with United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday.
“It was a very good conversation, very cordial. They spoke about migration issues, security issues. Starting yesterday these conversations [with the U.S. government] began, it’s very important for everyone to know that,” she said.
Sheinbaum said that the “first call” Rubio made as secretary of state “was to Mexico.”
“… And from there, a process of talks between both governments was opened,” she said.
Sheinbaum later said she was “convinced” that her government would reach agreement with the Trump administration on “different issues.”
Sheinbaum was also asked to respond to the Trump administration’s announcement that it would allow arrests of undocumented migrants at schools, churches and hospitals. (Galo Cañas Rodríguez/Cuartoscuro)
Sheinbaum: ‘We don’t agree’ with immigration raids at schools, churches, hospitals
A reporter asked Sheinbaum her opinion about the Trump administration’s announcement that it would allow federal immigration agencies to make arrests at schools, churches and hospitals in the United States.
“Of course we don’t agree,” the president said.
“And to protect our compatriots [in the U.S.] there are the [Mexican] consulates,” Sheinbaum said before reiterating that deportees and any Mexicans living in the U.S. who choose to return to Mexico voluntarily will be supported by the federal government.
Around 5 million undocumented Mexicans are estimated to be living in the United States.
Sheinbaum expresses support for Panama after Trump said that US is ‘taking back’ the Panama Canal
“Our support always to Panama,” Sheinbaum said after a reporter noted that Trump has designs on the Panama Canal.
“I didn’t mention it yesterday but our support always to the people and the government of Panama,” she said.
In a statement, he declared that the Panama Canal belongs to and will continue to belong to Panama and “its administration will continue being under Panamanian control.”
Sheinbaum seeks constitutional ban on the planting of GM corn
Sheinbaum told reporters that a constitutional reform proposal that seeks to ban the planting of genetically modified corn in Mexico is “ready.”
I think we’ll send it [to Congress] tomorrow. It’s very simple — the prohibition of the sowing of genetically modified corn in the country,” she said.
"We are not going to allow families to be thrown onto the street without any support," PAN president Jorge Romero said in response to Trump's mass deportation plan. (Victoria Valtierra/Cuartoscuro)
President Claudia Sheinbaum has said on repeated occasions that she believes Mexico will have a good relationship with the United States during Donald Trump’s second term as U.S. president. But how have other Mexican politicians reacted to the return of Trump to the White House?
Here is a roundup of what Mexico’s party leaders, lawmakers and state governors have said since Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on Monday.
PAN president Jorge Romero calls Trump a ‘bully’
The national president of Mexico’s main opposition party, the National Action Party (PAN), described Trump as a “bully” at a press conference on Monday.
“To that bully called 4T, another bigger bully called Donald Trump has arrived,” Romero said.
PAN party leader Jorge Romero described Trump as just another “bully” towards Mexico while making the same assessment of Mexico’s popular “Fourth Transformation” movement. (Victoria Valtierra/Cuartoscuro)
4T is an abbreviation of “Fourth Transformation” — a nickname for both the federal government and the political transformation former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador is said to have initiated when he took office in late 2018.
Romero, a former lawmaker who took over the national leadership of the PAN last November, also responded to Trump’s mass deportation plan.
“We’re facing a critical situation that requires clear and humane responses,” he said.
“… We will not allow the government to ignore this threat and to continue failing in its responsibility to Mexican families. … We are not going to allow families to be thrown onto the street without any support,” Romero said.
MC leader warns of ‘consequences’ of second Trump presidency
Jorge Álvarez Máynez, national coordinator of the Citizens Movement (MC) party and a candidate in last year’s presidential election, took to the X social media platform to offer a view on the second Trump presidency.
El mundo vivirá las consecuencias de las decisiones que tome un hombre de 78 años los próximos 4 años.
Tus hijos, y los míos, vivirán las consecuencias. Él no.
“The world will live the consequences of the decisions a 78-year-old man takes during the next four years. Your children, and mine, will live the consequences. He won’t,” Álvarez wrote without providing any additional explanation of his post.
Mexico unwilling to give up ‘a single millimeter’ of sovereignty to US, says Senate leader
Gerardo Fernández Noroña, a ruling Morena party senator who has been president of the Senate since Sept. 1, said Monday that “we agree with coordination, communication and collaboration with the United States government.”
“But,” he added, “under no circumstance are we willing to give up a single millimeter of our sovereignty and our national independence.”
The politician’s remarks came after Trump signed a number of executive orders directly related to Mexico, including one in which he outlined his intention to designate Mexican drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. Asked whether he would consider “ordering U.S. special forces into Mexico” to “take out” cartels, the U.S. president said it “could happen” and “stranger things have happened.”
Senate leader Gerardo Fernández Noroña echoed the president’s sentiment when he said “under no circumstance are we willing to give up a single millimeter of our sovereignty and our national independence.” (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
Fernández said that “the risk of a direct military intervention is unacceptable.”
“We’re an independent and sovereign nation, we’re pacifists, we’re not going to confront the United States army, but we’re not going to allow a military intervention,” he said.
PRI leader takes diplomatic approach
Alejandro Moreno, a federal senator and president of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), issued a statement “greeting” Trump on the occasion of his inauguration as president of the United States.
He said that the PRI hopes that the Trump administration will be successful “in benefit of the North American people and the consolidation of a more integrated, democratic and globally competitive North America.”
“… We hope that the government of Mexico is up to the challenges the region will face in order to be able to respond with strategy and intelligence and with character and determination to resolve the economic, security, migration and trade issues and to emerge strengthened as a country and region,” Moreno said.
Governors reject ‘any attempt of external interference’
The governors of Mexico’s 31 states and the mayor of Mexico City all endorsed a Jan. 21 National Governors’ Conference (CONAGO) statement “in defense of our sovereignty and the wellbeing of Mexicans.”
“CONAGO categorically rejects any attempt of external interference that violates our national sovereignty,” the governors said a day after Trump indicated that U.S. military action against cartels in Mexico wasn’t out of the question.
Esta mañana, las y los Gobernadores que integramos la CONAGO (@CONAGO_oficial) suscribimos este documento en respaldo a nuestra Presidenta, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (@Claudiashein), y a las y los mexicanos que viven en el exterior, a quienes siempre les tendremos los brazos… pic.twitter.com/ow245uv8wW
“In defense of our independence and self-determination, we make a call to respect the principles of non-intervention and mutual respect between nations,” the statement said.
The state governors and the Mexico City mayor also expressed their “complete support” for Mexican communities outside Mexico, “particularly those located in the United States.”
PAN senator pleased with (probable) designation of cartels as terrorists
PAN Senator Lilly Téllez said on X on Tuesday that she was “pleased” that “my initiative to designate cartels as terrorists is reality,” even though it occurred in the United States rather than Mexico.
She made that remark even though the official designation hasn’t yet occurred.
Téllez, a former journalist, said that designating cartels as terrorist organizations has been “her greatest wish since 1999 when I reported on cartels and survived an attack.”
She said that Trump’s executive order on cartels “is a first step toward the truth: in Mexico there is a narco state.”
The PAN senator (and former journalist) Lilly Téllez said that designating cartels as terrorist organizations has been “her greatest wish since 1999 when I reported on cartels and survived an attack.” (Twitter @LillyTellez)
In another X post, Téllez said that “the threat for Mexico is Morena, not Trump.”
“Morena protects the cartels, Trump goes against them,” she wrote.
Mexico should seek ‘gradual disconnection’ from US, says Morena lower house leader
“We’re a toxic neighbor for the new administration. The main threat for their security, their economy and their wellbeing is not Gaza or Ukraine or Iran but rather Mexico,” wrote the ruling party’s leader in the Chamber of Deputies.
The politician was referring to Trump’s executive orders regarding the “emergency” at the Mexico-U.S. border, Mexican cartels, trade and other issues.
“In the immediate term, as President Claudia Sheinbaum has established, we will gladly cooperate, collaborate and coordinate with our neighbor in order to confront problems such as fentanyl and irregular migration, but [we will do so] without kneeling down [or] subordinating ourselves,” Monreal wrote.
Morena party lower house leader Ricardo Monreal suggested Mexico start “the second independence” from the United States. (Crisanta Espinosa Aguilar/Cuartoscuro)
“… In the medium and long term we have to start the second independence of Mexico. In other words the gradual, orderly and planned disconnection from … [the country that] has decided to close itself off and fence itself in,” he said, making an apparent reference to Trump’s border wall.
“Let’s be the second or third [trade] partner of the rest of the world, of the emerging powers, taking advantage [of the fact] that we’re one of the countries with the most free trade agreements on the planet,” Monreal wrote.
“That means turning on the motor of the internal market, promoting a common market with Latin America and welcoming to these lands emerging powers, their products, goods and investment,” he said without mentioning any specific countries.
“It might take us a generation to carry out this restructuring but we have overcome worse heartaches,” Monreal said.
Lorena Ramírez is a member of the Raramuri, an Indigenous community in the mountains of Chihuahua known for its runners with remarkable stamina. She finished the 2025 Hong Kong Ultramarathon on Sunday. (Fundación Lorena Ramírez A.C./Facebook)
Rarámuri runner María Lorena Ramírez Nahueachi completed a 100-kilometer race Sunday in the 2025 edition of the Hong Kong Ultramarathon, wearing an Indigenous dress and traditional sandals known as guaraches.
The Rarámurí, or Tarahumara, are an Indigenous community living in the Sierra Tarahumara, the northern mountains of Chihuahua state. Their name for themselves, Rarámuri, means “runners on foot.” Tarahumara is a name that was applied to them by outsiders.
A few hours into the race, Ramírez received medical attention for foot lesions caused by the guarache sandals she wore. She bounced back and finished the Hong Kong ultramarathon in just over 24 hours. (Fundación Lorena Ramírez A.C./Facebook)
Two thousand women athletes participated in the ultramarathon, which covered different areas and terrains across Hong Kong. Ramírez finished 328th, with a final time of 26:02:12. The ultramarathon started in Pak Tam Chung and ended near Tao Mi Chan Peak, after a winding route with views of the region’s landscapes and challenging climbs.
Reportedly, Lorena Ramírez suffered lesions on her feet due to the guaraches she wore. She was attended by a medical team a few hours into the race, allowing her to finish the 100-kilometer distance.
Days before, also in Hong Kong, Ramirez’s brother, José Mario Ramírez, completed a 56-kilometer ultramarathon in 8 hours and 48 minutes, finishing up in 142nd place. Meanwhile, Mirna de la Cruz, from the southern Mexican state of Tabasco, completed a 33-kilometer route in 7 hours and 42 minutes.
“Greetings to all of Mexico. Thank you very much for the encouragement,” Lorena Ramírez said in a broadcast from Hong Kong shared by the Lorena Ramírez A.C. Foundation, an organization that provides food assistance, promotes educational programs and preserves the Rarámuri culture.
The Rarámuri runners stand out for regularly participating in international long-distance races. Their remarkable endurance is shaped by the challenging conditions of the regions in which they live. After studying their cardiovascular functions 50 years ago, cardiologist Dale Groom called them “modern Spartans.”
Mexico's Lázaro Cárdenas port in Michoacán. (Government of Mexico)
United States President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on Mexico could limit economic growth to 0.6% in 2025, financial services company Moody’s Ratings warned on Monday.
“Our estimates indicate that the Mexican economy would lose around 1 percentage point of growth in 2025. We are estimating that Mexico would only grow 0.6% this year,” said Director of Economic Analysis for Latin America at Moody’s Analytics Alfredo Coutiño in an online conference Tuesday.
Alfredo Coutiño also predicted Monday that U.S tariffs could cause rising inflation in Mexico and peso depreciation. (LinkedIn)
On his first day in office Monday, President Trump announced plans to introduce 25% tariffs on products from the U.S.’s two main trading partners, Mexico and Canada, starting February 1.
On January 17, the International Monetary Fund predicted Mexico would see economic growth of 1.4% in 2025. The revised Moody’s forecast suggests growth may falter in the wake of U.S. tariffs causing trade to slow.
This could also harm Mexico’s nearshoring efforts, which President Claudia Sheinbaum has been encouraging through her term-long Plan México strategy, which is aimed at luring more foreign investment to Mexico.
Coutiño also warned that tariffs could cause inflation to rise and the peso to depreciate, which may prompt Mexico to tighten its monetary policy.
“The tariff and protectionist policy of the United States government will have an effect on investment flows due to the relocation of companies, not only from the U.S. but from other parts of the world, particularly Asian companies that wanted to reach the Mexican market,” said Coutiño.
By contrast, Moody’s Ratings predicts that the Latin American region will experience greater GDP growth in 2025, of around 2.1%.
This view is also shared by the World Bank, which projected 2.6% growth for the Latin America and the Caribbean region in late 2024. In an October report, the organization predicted Mexico would lag behind its neighbors with just 1.5% growth, the third lowest among all regional nations.
Literary icon Margaret Atwood spoke in San Miguel de Allende on dystopian fiction and today’s world. (All photos by Scott Umstattd/San Miguel Writers' Conference)
On January 12, five-time Emmy Award-winning journalist Martin Fletcher conducted a fascinating interview with literary icon Margaret Atwood in San Miguel de Allende. Entitled “From Fiction to Reality — Has Our Dystopian Future Arrived?”, the live event was a scholarship fundraiser for the upcoming 20th annual San Miguel Writers Conference.
Mexico News Daily reporter Ann Marie Jackson had the pleasure of continuing the conversation with both Fletcher — who is also a Mexico News Daily trustee — and Atwood, probing deeper into issues of importance to Mexico.
Atwood receives the San Miguel Writers’ Conference Award for Literary Excellence
Margaret Atwood holds aloft an award presented by San Miguel Writers’ Conference Executive Director Jodi Pincus.
Susan Page, Founder and President of the San Miguel Writers’ Conference & Literary Festival, and Executive Director Jodi Pincus launched the evening by presenting Ms. Atwood with the conference’s first annual Award for Literary Excellence.
“It is not an exaggeration to say that Margaret Atwood is a pioneer of the written word,” noted Page. “Her work transcends genres… and explores virtually every facet of the human experience. In addition to her extraordinary literary output, Margaret Atwood… uses her platform to speak out against injustice. She challenges us to think, to question norms, and I believe she is a model for a future in which literature serves as a guiding light in troubled times… We are grateful for her stories, courage, and relentless pursuit of truth.”
Martin Fletcher shares his ‘Margaret Atwood moment’
Martin Fletcher, former NBC Middle East correspondent and Tel Aviv Bureau Chief, current commentator for MSNBC and PBS NewsHour, and author of eight books, resides in San Miguel. Early in the conversation, Fletcher shared his own “Margaret Atwood moment,” which happened in Afghanistan.
Margaret Atwood was interviewed by Martin Fletcher, the recipient of five Emmy Awards, five Overseas Press Club Awards, and the Pulitzer Prize for television.
After the first Taliban government fell in 2001, he went there to do a story on a women’s art class. “After living for years under extreme restrictions, these women were finally able to leave their houses unchaperoned by a male relative,” he explained. “And it was amazing. Their paintings were quite good, but what struck me was that half of them essentially showed the same image: dark edges all around and a little strip of the world showing in the middle — which was all they had been able to see through the eye slit in their burkas.”
“That sent a shiver down my spine. I thought wow, this is Margaret Atwood’s world in real life.”
Dystopian fiction from a female perspective
“Is it true,” Fletcher asked Atwood, “that you wrote The Handmaid’s Tale from a woman’s point of view because 1984 by George Orwell and most other works of dystopian fiction were written from a male viewpoint?”
“Nearly all,” Atwood responded. “There were some female-written utopian works early on, but not dystopian ones. Utopias were popular through the 19th century into the early 20th, but then there was a turning point… After World War Two, it was just not possible to write utopias for a while.” Ray Bradbury and others wrote powerful dystopian works in that era.
“I started thinking about writing The Handmaid’s Tale after the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980. He immediately began dismantling the progress made by 1970s second-wave feminism as well as the social contract of the New Deal. A friend of mine who escaped from Poland as a child, both from the Nazis and the Communists, could see a dystopia coming. She recognized one when she saw it. And she said to me, are you aware that the extreme, so-called ‘religious right’ is now refashioning itself as a political power, and one of the things they are saying is that women should be back in the home?”
“Whenever anyone says ‘women should,’ I always think about how they could implement it. Well, thanks to second-wave feminism, many women had jobs outside the home. They were earning money; they had credit cards; they had some freedom. How could those in power stop that, I wondered — and the answer I found was by obliterating the jobs and thereby cutting off the money.”
To write The Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood also knew she needed to fill in a gap in her knowledge of American history by studying Puritanism in the New England colonies. “So I studied that quite thoroughly, and I’m here to tell you that America did not begin as a democracy. Sorry, but it didn’t. It began as a theocracy — and if you have something like that in your background, it’s quite likely to recur.” Fletcher concurred that the current Christian nationalist movement in the United States is frighteningly influential.
Susan Page held the microphone for Margaret Atwood so she could demonstrate her famous diagram of the relationship between chaos and tyranny.
American dystopia: false nostalgia and the belief in a golden past
“There’s a recurring tendency in human history,” noted Atwood, “to believe in a Golden Age and that there’s some way of returning to it. That goes all the way back to the Greeks, and it’s the same with Make America Great Again. Okay, which period of time are you thinking about? The 1950s? We actually don’t know when the supposed brightness was; it’s false nostalgia, a recurring human thing, and it’s very attractive.”
“The inauguration has not even taken place yet. Give it three months, and we’ll know what movie we’re in — is it Game of Thrones? Macbeth with Mrs. Vance playing Lady Macbeth? Or Julius Caesar? Will Mr. Trump have an unfortunate fall down a flight of stairs? All of these are intensely possible.”
“We’re watching a pitched battle for power amongst the billionaire courtiers, too, with Elon Musk, Peter Thiel and others who hate each other. I think we’re in the Machiavellian Renaissance,” said Atwood. Fletcher agreed, noting that the present political situation in the United States appears to be uniquely difficult in part because of the historic rise in the influence of unelected billionaires.
He also shared his concern with Jackson that Mexican immigrants in the U.S. will be targeted during the early months of Trump’s second term. Many of the new president’s campaign promises to the MAGA base will be impossible to fulfill, but sweeping up some undocumented immigrants is both possible and politically appealing.
When asked by Jackson about Mexico and America’s joint dystopian reality around illicit drug use and cartel violence, Atwood responded, “It’s a vicious spiral. The real solution I suppose is to remove the appetite for drugs, but you can’t do that without making life more attractive for those who consume them. America right now is a deeply unhappy nation — and the more drugs, the more unhappy.”
Fletcher and Atwood on stage together.
Prophet or not: Atwood on activism
Fletcher noted that as the writer of the incredibly prescient Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood, an astute student of the past, is now treated by many people as something of an oracle or prophet. Her deadpan response to his question of just how much could actually come true? “Well, I don’t think we’ll get the outfits.”
Fletcher and Atwood then more seriously discussed the responsibilities of writers as activists. Atwood volunteers with a group called the Theater of War that puts on Greek tragedies for targeted groups of people, such as veterans suffering from PTSD. She plays Tiresias, a know-it-all prophet who is always right. “I love playing that role, but it’s not who I am in real life. I am not a prophet. I cannot predict the future. If I could, I would have every horse race thoroughly covered.”
Atwood insisted that she is not a “real,” full-time activist, but acknowledged the importance of using her platform to speak out against injustice. “Real activists tend to have jobs, while I’m a self-employed writer who can’t be fired. Also, I’m so old; I’m not worried about my future. People can’t get at me the way they could if I had a job and were younger. So when I frequently get called to speak about these things, there’s no reason I can’t.”
Atwood also shared with Jackson her respect for Mexican activists and journalists covering narcos, impunity, and government corruption. “They’re amazingly brave people,” she said.
However, when asked about calling others to activism, Atwood responded, “I can’t tell other people how they should be called upon to behave. Their circumstances are different; they could be a lot more vulnerable. They could be supporting a family or they may be part of a community that’s quite censorious and punitive. There are all kinds of reasons why people can’t answer their inner conscience publicly. So it’s not up to me to tell people what to do. People will tell themselves what they can afford to do and should be doing.”
Attend the 20th annual San Miguel Writers’ Conference, February 12-16
This fascinating event raised funds for the San Miguel Writers’ Conference student scholarship program. For more information and to purchase tickets to the 20th annual San Miguel Writers’ Conference on February 12-16, visithttps://sanmiguelwritersconference.org.
Based in San Miguel de Allende, Ann Marie Jackson is a writer and NGO leader who previously worked for the U.S. Department of State. Her award-winning novel “The Broken Hummingbird,” which is set in San Miguel de Allende, came out in October 2023. Ann Marie can be reached through her website, annmariejacksonauthor.com.
El Punto is the first of three deportee shelters to go up in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. Authorities are also planning to build shelters in Baja California, Sonora, Coahuila, Tamaulipas and Nuevo León. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
Authorities in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, have begun building tent shelters ahead of a potential influx of migrants who could soon be deported under United States President Donald Trump’s recent executive order to crack down on illegal immigration to the U.S.
The temporary shelters in Juárez — there are three under construction — will be able to house over 7,500 Mexican migrants.
Three shelters, accommodating up to 7,500 migrants, will be built in the area of Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
The first of the three shelters is being built on federal property in the area of El Punto, and will accommodate deported citizens of Mexico, Enrique Serrano Escobar, general coordinator of the Chihuahua State Population Council, told the newspaper El Heraldo de Juárez.
As reported by news outlet Net Noticias, the El Punto shelter will have eight large tents that will be divided into separate areas: one for women and children and another one for men. One tent will serve as a dining room.
Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez said on Tuesday that the El Punto shelter should be operational in the next five days and will provide food, medical checkups and temporary lodging at no cost to migrants. Deported Mexicans also have the right to receive a debit card pre-loaded with 2,000 pesos (US $98) that they can use to return to their home states if desired, as part of the “Mexico Te Abraza” (Mexico Embraces You) repatriation support program announced by President Claudia Sheinbaum on Monday.
According to Sheinbaum, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) will be present across the reception centers and shelters.
Ariadna Montiel Reyes (@A_MontielR) aseguró que ya hay un equipo de la Secretaría del @bienestarmx instalando albergues en Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, para apoyar a los mexicanos repatriados de #EUA, a través de una Tarjeta del Bienestar… pic.twitter.com/KLRYVHst7k
Welfare Minister Ariadna Montiel Reyes said that each shelter will be equipped with 50 government aides who will help deported Mexicans with their reintegration.
The new constructions in Ciudad Juárez are part of the Mexican government’s plan to establish nine reception areas for Mexican deportees in northern Mexico, including two in Baja California, one in Sonora, one in Coahuila, three in Tamaulipas and one in Nuevo León.
The shelters are intended to house deportees temporarily for a few days, after which they can choose to return to their place of origin. Otherwise, they’ll be directed to permanent migration shelters.
The Mexican government is reportedly preparing to send 189 buses to the northern border to transport migrants to their towns of origin in Mexico. Non-Mexican deportees “will be processed according to the indications and regulations established by the National Migration Institute (INM),” Escobar said.
Mexican authorities reported this morning that the number of daily deportations to Mexico has remained normal.
Upon taking office, U.S. President Trump moved swiftly to clamp down on illegal immigration to the United States and reverse policies approved by former President Joe Biden, policies that he said were overly permissive and allowed a large influx of undocumented immigrants.
According to a report by Mexico’s Colegio de la Frontera Norte (Colef) published earlier this month, some 13.5 million people without legal status in the U.S. could be subject to deportation. The report revealed that 4.9 million are Mexican nationals, while another 4.9 million come from Central America, South America and the Caribbean.
Want to see the upcoming planetry alignment, but can't see past the glare of Mexico City's lights? Here are the best stargazing spots in Mexico to try instead. (Nathan Jennings/Unsplash)
One of Mexico City’s greatest tragedies is the loss of its clear night skies. Asphyxiated by smog, particles and artificial light pollution, astronomer and researcher Omar López-Cruz explains, stars are no longer visible in the capital — and have not been for quite some time now. However, Mexico as a country is lauded for its natural darkness conditions, particularly in remote places, not yet defiled by excessive urbanization.
This lack of visibility is even more of a tragedy to capitalinos when spectacular natural phenomena, like the perfect planetary alignment of January 2025, unfold in the celestial vault. If, like myself, you’re all about astronomical observation and anything related to the cosmos, fear not! You can still watch the celestial dance — even from Mexico City’s polluted heavens. Here’s the complete guide to how, when and where to watch this unique astronomical phenomenon.
What planets will be aligned during January 2025?
Sky chart showing the planetary lineup visible after dark in January 2025. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)
On Jan. 25, 2025, a very rare planetary alignment will illuminate the night sky. The dance has already begun and has been ongoing for the entire month. However, on the 25th night of January, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and Mercury will form a perfect line in the sky.
This, of course, does not mean the planets will be aligned in space: It is an optical illusion visible from the Earth’s surface only. It doesn’t make it any less impressive to watch: NASA even referred to this astronomical event as a “planet parade” because these planets will be visible at once, “which doesn’t happen every year.” As per the institution’s predictions, the best time to hunt for this planetary alignment will be a couple of hours after dark. In Mexico, this can happen around 8 p.m. and up to 3 a.m.
Where to watch the planetary alignment of January 2025 from Mexico
Natural darkness conditions refer to what the night sky was like before human intervention and the introduction of artificial lights. (Robson Hatsukami Morgan/ Unsplash)
Yes, despite the capital’s light pollution problems, we still have amazing spots to steal a glimpse into our Universe. Not only that, Mexico has certified ‘natural darkness’ designated locations close to the city to fully appreciate this natural phenomenon. The following are some of the very best.
El Chico National Park (Hidalgo)
Cliffs, dams and rivers make the perfect scenery for an astronomical observation night at the El Chico national park, in the heart of the central state of Hidalgo. The park offers accommodation, from simple camping to boutique stays with one purpose in mind: observing the clear night sky.
Awarded as an official natural darkness hub, ‘El Chico’ is easily accessible from Mexico City. Expect a 40-minute trip from the capital by car, or an hour ride by bus. You can stay all night and plan your star-hunting night ahead. Several specialists from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) lead tours with guided observation experiences. Some local astrophotographers organize entire weekends just to take the perfect shot. What better way to enjoy the night sky than to actually understand what you’re seeing — and where to look?
Iztaccíhuatl-Popocatépetl National Park (México state-Puebla border)
Star-gazing with ‘El Popo’ in the background? Yes, please! (Erik Gómez Tochimani via Facebook)
As the second and third highest peaks in Mexico, the twin volcanos of Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl are mostly snow-capped in winter. For January’s planetary alignment, the mythical pre-Hispanic couple makes the perfect sentinels to guard your starwatching. These sentinels, however, can be volatile — especially ‘El Popo’.
Although the volcano has not erupted in 87 years — the last explosion was in 1938, following the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources’ records — it does emit fumaroles constantly. These exhalations are mostly unpredictable and could be a headache during your astronomical observation endeavors.
Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park (Baja California)
This national park has one of the best observatories in Latin America. UNAM scientists hand-picked this place because Baja California has clear night skies for much of the year. This is why, too, this is one of the most popular sites for astronomical observation, both for amateurs and professionals.
Even though the planetary alignment will be visible to the naked eye, visitors can enjoy a clearer view of these and other celestial bodies with the observatory’s equipment. The National Astronomical Observatory-San Pedro Mártir (OAN-SPM) is located at kilometer 107 of the Tijuana-Ensenada highway. You can book a visit or request further details here.
No clear skies? No problem!
As one of Latin America’s top astronomical institutions, UNAM runs some of the best observatories in the region, packed with top-notch experts — all of them are ready to instruct and accompany astronomy rookies in their observation journeys. TheMexican Astronomy Society welcomes newbies as well.
So, if you live in Mexico City and do not want to miss out on January’s planetary alignment, you can turn to these research centers, which are always open to support curious nerds — like me! Otherwise, NASA broadcasts astronomical events on their social media, where you can hear the experts comment on the Universe’s perennial dance. Happy planet parade!
In addition to Trump's executive orders aimed at Mexico, Sheinbaum also spoke about Trump's deportation plan and the decline in migrant arrivals at the Mexico-U.S. border. (Gustavo Alberto/Cuartoscuro)
At her morning press conference on Tuesday, President Claudia Sheinbaum responded to some of the executive orders signed by Donald Trump on the first day of his second term. She also spoke about Trump’s deportation plan and the decline in migrant arrivals at the Mexico-U.S. border.
Here are some of the president’s key quotes from her Tuesday mañanera.
On Trump’s declaration of an ’emergency’ at the US southern border
“It’s not something new. [The same thing] occurred in 2019. … At that time there was cooperation between the government of the United States of President Trump and the government of Mexico of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. So it is not something new.”
Sheinbaum used her daily town hall to highlight the “humanistic” nature of her government and the common interests that Mexico shares with the United States. (Gustavo Alberto/Cuartoscuro)
On Trump’s order for the resumption of the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy
“We have our own immigration policy but we’re also a humanitarian government. If there is a person at the border, we act in a humanitarian way, even more so now because it’s so cold. We’re not going to leave people exposed to the elements. So we act in a humanitarian way and in the case of foreigners we seek repatriation to their countries.”
On Trump’s plan to designate cartels as foreign terrorist organizations
“They can act and must act in their territory. … Criminal organizations that sell fentanyl and other drugs also operate inside the United States. So, in their territory, they act. With respect to Mexico, [we stand for] the defense of our sovereignty and always seek dialogue for cooperation without subordination.”
“We all want to combat drug cartels, that is clear. So what do we have to do? We have to coordinate efforts and collaborate — them in their territory and us in our territory.”
On Trump’s order to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America
“For us it continues being the Gulf of Mexico and for the whole world it continues being the Gulf of Mexico.”
On Trump’s plan to deport large numbers of immigrants
“Mexicans in the United States support a large part of the United States economy, and the U.S. government knows that. [But] in case of deportations, [the deportees] are welcome here. Besides, Mexico is a growing country, a country in development. … We’ll embrace Mexicans [deported from the U.S.]”
On the decline in migrant numbers at the Mexico-US border
Both Mexican and foreign companies are expected to benefit from the decree. (Shutterstock)
On Tuesday, President Claudia Sheinbaum signed a ‘“nearshoring decree” listing a package of fiscal incentives for new investments worth up to 30 billion pesos (US $1.46 billion).
The incentives will be available for companies investing in Mexico or spending on training and innovation. The decree has been published in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF) and will enter into force tomorrow, Jan. 22.
The decree is part of a range of actions being developed to support Sheinbaum’s Plan México. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartocuro)
Out of the total funds available, 28.5 billion pesos ($1.38 billion) are earmarked for investment in new fixed assets and 1.5 billion pesos ($72.7 million) will go towards training and innovation expenses.
To administer the stimulus package, the government will create an Evaluation Committee with representatives from the Finance and Economy Ministries, as well as the Advisory Council for Regional Economic Development and Relocation.
Eligible companies must apply for tax incentives and may be issued a certificate of compliance by the Evaluation Committee. The committee will then assess projects for their suitability and will determine the maximum tax incentive companies can apply for each fiscal year.
To encourage small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to apply for incentives, the government has allocated at least 1 billion pesos ($48.4 million) for companies with total annual earnings of less than 100 million pesos ($4.8 million).
According to the decree, companies can deduct anywhere between 35% and 91% for investments in machinery, equipment and fixed assets.
During Sheinbaum’s presentation of Plan México on Jan. 13, the president asserted that there is already US $277 billion in the investment pipeline from companies that want to come to Mexico, spread across some 2,000 projects.
The Evaluation Committee must publish guidelines for the granting of fiscal incentives in the DOF within 60 days.
Just hours after his inauguration as the 47th president of the United States, Donald Trump signed a number of executive orders directly related to Mexico. (Donald Trump/Facebook)
Just hours after his inauguration as the 47th president of the United States, Donald Trump signed a number of executive orders directly related to Mexico.
At least some of those orders have the potential to have a significant impact on the Mexico-United States relationship, especially in the early period of Trump’s second presidency.
Some of the executive orders signed by Trump yesterday could have a significant impact on the Mexico-United States relationship. (Shutterstock)
President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that she will maintain “a cool head” and respond “step by step” to the actions taken by Trump on the first day of his second term.
Here is a summary of five Mexico-related executive orders Trump signed in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday night.
1. Emergency at the United States’ southern border
“That’s a big one, a lot of big ones, huh?” Trump said after an aide announced the order he was about to sign.
The declaration of an emergency at the United States-Mexico border allows the president to access funding for border wall construction without approval from the U.S. Congress.
In the executive order, Trump said that “America’s sovereignty is under attack.”
“Our southern border is overrun by cartels, criminal gangs, known terrorists, human traffickers, smugglers, unvetted military-age males from foreign adversaries, and illicit narcotics that harm Americans. … This invasion has caused widespread chaos and suffering in our country over the last four years,” he said.
Among the directives Trump issued in his executive order were the following:
The deployment of the U.S. military “to support the activities of the Secretary of Homeland Security in obtaining complete operational control of the southern border of the United States.”
The construction of “additional physical barriers along the southern border.”
The prioritization of “the impedance and denial of the unauthorized physical entry of aliens across the southern border of the United States.”
Construction of the United States-Mexico border wall at the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in southern Arizona. (Laiken Jordahl/Center for Biological Diversity)
The New York Times reported Monday that involving the U.S. military in border security tasks “would draw immediate legal challenges because of the strict limits in American law for how the armed forces can be deployed inside the country.”
2. Drug cartels could be designated as foreign terrorist organizations
“Within 14 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of State shall take all appropriate action … to make a recommendation regarding the designation of any cartel or other organization described in section 1 of this order as a Foreign Terrorist Organization,” the order said.
The terrorist designation will likely apply to powerful Mexican criminal organizations such as the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
“That’s a big one,” Trump said just before signing the executive order.
“People have wanted to do this for years. So they are now designated as terrorist organizations foreign. Mexico probably doesn’t want that but we have to do it. … They’re killing our people, they’re killing 250,000 to 300,000 American people a year, not 100 [thousand] like has been reported,” he said referring to drug overdose deaths.
A member of Mexico’s military in Apodaca, Nuevo León, readying to incinerate over 950 kilograms of illicit drugs confiscated from Mexican cartels in December 2024. (Gabriela Pérez Montiel/Cuartoscuro)
Trump’s executive order said that “the Cartels have engaged in a campaign of violence and terror throughout the Western Hemisphere that has not only destabilized countries with significant importance for our national interests but also flooded the United States with deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs.”
It also said that “it is the policy of the United States to ensure the total elimination of these organizations’ presence in the United States and their ability to threaten the territory, safety, and security of the United States through their extraterritorial command-and-control structures.”
Asked whether he would consider “ordering U.S. special forces into Mexico” to “take out” cartels, Trump said it “could happen.”
3. Trump orders resumption of Remain in Mexico policy
The 47th U.S. president also signed an executive order entitled “Securing our borders.”
“My Administration will marshal all available resources and authorities to stop this unprecedented flood of illegal aliens into the United States,” Trump said in the order.
In it, he ordered the resumption of Migrant Protection Protocols, as the Remain in Mexico policy was formally known.
Migrants expecting to carry out their asylum process in the United States faced an uncertain future yesterday after Donald Trump signed an executive order indicating a return to the Remain in Mexico policy of his first administration. (Omar Martínez/Cuartoscuro)
The policy, implemented by Trump during his first term as president, required asylum seekers who arrived at the Mexico-United States border to remain in Mexico as they awaited U.S. immigration court hearings. The Mexican government is opposed to the reactivation of the policy, which would appear to hinder Trump’s plan.
In his “Securing our borders” executive order, Trump also ordered the Secretary of Homeland Security to “cease using the ‘CBP One’ application as a method of paroling or facilitating the entry of otherwise inadmissible aliens into the United States.”
An update on the CBP One website states that “effective January 20, 2025, the functionalities of CBP One that previously allowed undocumented aliens to submit advance information and schedule appointments at eight southwest border ports of entry is no longer available, and existing appointments have been cancelled.”
In another executive order — “Guaranteeing the states protection against invasion” — Trump directed that the entry of “aliens engaged in the invasion across the southern border” be suspended “until I issue a finding that the invasion at the southern border has ceased.”
4. Trump orders renaming of the Gulf of Mexico
In his inauguration speech, Trump declared that “a short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) is already recognizing the “Gulf Of America” in an official executive order pertaining to an emergency winter weather order. pic.twitter.com/DHZx91vFnp
In addition to ordering the reinstatement of the name Mount McKinley (the mountain in Alaska was renamed Denali in 2015), Trump directed that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America.
“Within 30 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior shall … take all appropriate actions to rename as the ‘Gulf of America’ the U.S. Continental Shelf area bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida and extending to the seaward boundary with Mexico and Cuba in the area formerly named as the Gulf of Mexico,” the executive order said.
The order also said that “the area formerly known as the Gulf of Mexico has long been an integral asset to our once burgeoning Nation and has remained an indelible part of America.”
5. Trump sets the stage for tariffs on Mexican exports
Among a large number of presidential actions on his first day in office, Trump also issued an “America First Trade Policy” memorandum.
As we reported here, Trump said on Monday night that his administration could impose a 25% tariff on Mexican and Canadian exports to the U.S. on Feb. 1.
No day one tariffs, but orders signed directing Pres Trump officials to deliver reports to him on “unfair trade practices”, “currency manipulation” and “discriminatory” foreign taxes.
The president’s trade policy memo directed the Secretary of Commerce to “investigate the causes of our country’s large and persistent annual trade deficits in goods, as well as the economic and national security implications and risks resulting from such deficits, and recommend appropriate measures, such as a global supplemental tariff or other policies, to remedy such deficits.”
President Claudia Sheinbaum has said that her government will seek to avert the proposed tariff on Mexican exports through dialogue with the Trump administration.
Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Mexico’s Banco Base, said on X on Tuesday that it is “highly unlikely that Trump will impose a general 25% tariff on all products from Mexico, at least not for a long period of time.”
“A 25% tariff would be equivalent to leaving the USMCA,” she said.
“This would mean a structural change for the Mexican economy that would result in a severe recession, job losses, an increase in [employment] informality to rates above 60% and an increase in public insecurity,” Siller said.
She also warned that a 25% tariff on Mexican exports to the U.S. would result in “increases in the exchange rate to historic maximums,” i.e. a significant weakening of the Mexican peso against the US dollar.
For the United States, a 25% tariff on Mexican exports “would mean supply change disruptions, a sharp rise in inflation, a higher interest rate and lower economic growth,” Siller said.
