A New York Times report argues that Trump's second presidency now relies on deeper partnerships with Mexico, in contrast with the anti-Mexico rhetoric that helped build his political brand. The passage provided does not describe a specific new agreement, order or policy step.

This account currently relies on New York Times. We have not independently corroborated it.

Mexico is the largest trading partner of the United States and central to migration and drug enforcement policy, so the working relationship between the two governments affects prices, supply chains and border policy. One reading is that pragmatism has finally beaten campaign rhetoric. The other is that cooperation with Mexico has always coexisted with public hostility, and can be reversed quickly when politics demands it.

Trump launched his first presidential campaign in June 2015 with remarks attacking Mexican migrants and a promise to build a border wall paid for by Mexico. In office from 2017 he threatened blanket tariffs on Mexican goods to force migration enforcement, and in 2018 to 2020 renegotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement into the United States, Mexico, Canada Agreement. Despite the hostile language, Mexico became the largest trading partner of the United States by 2023, overtaking China, and successive Mexican governments have cooperated on migration control at the southern border. That combination of tough rhetoric and practical dependence is the tension the report describes.

1. 1994NAFTA takes effect. The North American Free Trade Agreement binds the United States, Mexico and Canada into one trading bloc and deepens cross border supply chains. Source
2. 2015Trump launches his campaign with attacks on Mexico. In June 2015 Trump announces his presidential run with remarks about Mexican migrants and a pledge that Mexico will pay for a border wall. Source
3. 2019Tariff threat produces a migration deal. Trump threatens escalating tariffs on all Mexican goods, and Mexico agrees to step up enforcement, including deploying the National Guard to its southern border. Source
4. 2020USMCA replaces NAFTA. The United States, Mexico, Canada Agreement enters into force on 1 July 2020 with new rules on autos, labour and dispute settlement. Source
5. 2023Mexico becomes the top US trading partner. Mexico overtakes China as the largest source of goods imported by the United States, helped by companies shifting production closer to home. Source
6. 2024Claudia Sheinbaum elected president of Mexico. Sheinbaum wins the June 2024 election and takes office in October 2024, inheriting the trade and security relationship with Washington. Source

Trump's 2019 tariff threat against Mexico and the resulting migration deal. In both cases hostile rhetoric toward Mexico sits alongside a practical reliance on Mexican cooperation over trade and migration, ending in closer working ties.

Where the comparison breaks down: The 2019 episode had a concrete trigger and outcome, a threatened five percent tariff and a signed enforcement agreement in June 2019. The current report describes a general shift in posture without a documented decision in the evidence.

• The evidence is a single article from one publisher, with only a short passage available, so the specific policies behind the claim are not visible here.
• It is not clear from the evidence whether any formal agreement, tariff change or security arrangement underlies the reported shift.
• Whether the reported warming is durable or tied to a particular negotiation is not established.

Watch for concrete steps that would confirm the shift, such as tariff decisions on Mexican goods, joint security or anti cartel arrangements, or scheduled reviews of the United States, Mexico, Canada Agreement.

• New York Times: Trump’s New Favorite Neighbor: Mexico · Headline and summary · 23 September 2026

Read the original reporting at the links above. Our analysis can be wrong and may change as evidence develops.

• The Dawn of Innovation is not relevant; see instead: Mexico's Mandarins
• Vanishing Frontiers: The Forces Driving Mexico and the United States Together — Andrew Selee
• El Narco: Inside Mexico's Criminal Insurgency — Ioan Grillo
• United States, Mexico, Canada Agreement overview — Office of the United States Trade Representative