InfoTrac Reader Mexico Ever since his victory in the 2000 presidential election ended the more than 70 years of uninterrupted PRI rule, attention has been focused on Vicente Fox and his efforts to reform Mexican politics. For at least two reasons, his track record has been mixed. First, he does not have a majority in the Chamber of Deputies. His PAN and its allies only had 218 of 500 seats and saw that total tumble to 153 in the 2003 midterm elections, while the PRI inched close to a majority with 224. As a result, Mexico has been suffering from its equivalent of American gridlock in which feuding political parties cannot easily reach agreements on public policy. Second, Fox put a lot of the emphasis for his sexeño on improving relations with the United States. Everything seemed fine at first. He was the first foreign head of state to visit President George W. Bush at his Texas ranch, and the two demonstrated a willingness to work closely together in the closing statement of what was dubbed the "boots summit" to reflect the two men's preference for informal clothes and their ranching backgrounds. Unfortunately for Fox, the visit occurred just days before 9/11 and American priorities have turned elsewhere which, in particular, has doomed any reforms to loosen US immigration policy. Improved economic growth in 2004 has helped Mexico's overall situation. Currently the three main parties are beginning to jockey for position to see which candidate will replace Fox as president in 2006. Transforming Mexico, take two; Gridlock in Mexico. (The travails of Mexico's president) The Economist (US) April 17, 2004 v371 i8371 p36US (705 words) Plan que? Developing southern Mexico. (A stalled Mexican development plan) The Economist (US) April 10, 2004 v371 i8370 p29US (692 words) Free For All; Corruption scandals and voter cynicism are fueling a wide-open race to replace Fox. Joseph Contreras. Newsweek International April 5, 2004 p31 (1384 words) Mexico at Impasse. M. Delal Baer. Foreign Affairs Jan-Feb 2004 v83 i1 p101 (4369 words) Interview: A 'Dysfunctional' System; The former foreign minister, now running for president, argues that institutional change must be a priority. (Interview) Scott Johnson. Newsweek International April 5, 2004 p33 (763 words) One step forward, one step back: Mexico's gains from NAFTA are undercut by failure of reforms. (North American Free Trade Agreement)(Cover Story) Peter T. Leach. The Journal of Commerce Jan 5, 2004 v5 i1 p8(3) (1467 words) Mexico: Was NAFTA Worth It? A tale of what free trade can and cannot do. (North American Free Trade Agreement) Geri Smith, Cristina Lindblad. Business Week Dec 22, 2003 i3863 p34 (3670 words) The man who would be president; A rising star in Mexico. (A Lula for Mexico?) The Economist (US) Nov 15, 2003 v369 i8350 p36US (1037 words) Beer, Caroline. "Institutional Change in Mexico." Latin American Research Review. 37 (2002). This is the only book review included in the InfoTrac reader. It is here because is uses a number of recent books as a springboard for assessing broad patterns of change which antedate Fox's election. Advanced. Dominguez, Jorge and James McCann, "Shaping Mexico's Electoral Arena." American Political Science Review 89 (1995). Although based on surveys from 1988 and 1991, this article goes a long way toward helping us understand why Fox one and the PRI lost in 2000. Intermediate. Klesner, Joseph and Chappell Lawson, "Adios to the PRI." Mexican Studies/ Estudios Mexicanos . 17 (2001). Perhaps the best analysis of how changes in the electorate led to the PRI's defeat in 2000. Advanced. Otero, Gerardo, "Mexico's Political Future(s) in a Globalizing World Economy." Canadian Journal of Sociology and Anthropology. 32 (1995). Though nearly a decade old, this article provides an intriguing left of center analysis of why Mexican governments have pursued economic reform since the 1980s. Intermediate. Peschard-Sverdrup, Armand. "Mexico's New-and Reef-ridden-Waters. World and I. 17 (May 2002). One of the best overviews of Fox's elections and its implications. Basic. Peters, Enrique Dussel, "Mexico's Liberalization Strategy: Ten Years On." Journal of Economic Issues. 32(1998). A good overview of the reforms the PRI institute and which Fox has largely continued. Intermediate. Reding, Andrew, "Facing Political Reality in Mexico." Washington Quarterly. 20 (1997). One of the few articles that looks at reform in Mexico below the national level. Intermediate. Schedler, Andreas, "Common Sense without Common Ground." Mexican Studies/Estudios Mexicanos. 16 (2000). An intriguing article which holds that Mexicans had found a common cause in opposition to the PRI but not a common approach to the best of dealing with that. Advanced. Time. "The Bionic Candidate." 3 July 2000. A good brief biography of Mexico's president on the eve of his election. Basic. Williams, Mark Eric. "Traversing the Mexican Odyssey." Mexican Studies-Estudios Mexicanos. 18 (2002). This article explores not only how the 71 years of PRI rule shaped Mexico but how outsiders studied it. Advanced. For more articles on Mexico, enter: "Mexico" in the Subject Guide, and then go to subdivision "politics and government." "Mexico" in the Subject Guide, and then go to subdivision "political aspects." "Mexico" in the Subject Guide, and then go to subdivision "elections." "Mexico" in the Subject Guide, and then go to relevant subdivisions. Mexico at Impasse. M. Delal Baer. Foreign Affairs Jan-Feb 2004 v83 i1 p101 (4369 words) Interview: A 'Dysfunctional' System; The former foreign minister, now running for president, argues that institutional change must be a priority. (Interview) Scott Johnson. Newsweek International April 5, 2004 p33 (763 words) One step forward, one step back: Mexico's gains from NAFTA are undercut by failure of reforms. (North American Free Trade Agreement)(Cover Story) Peter T. Leach. The Journal of Commerce Jan 5, 2004 v5 i1 p8(3) (1467 words) Mexico: Was NAFTA Worth It? A tale of what free trade can and cannot do. (North American Free Trade Agreement) Geri Smith, Cristina Lindblad. Business Week Dec 22, 2003 i3863 p34 (3670 words) The man who would be president; A rising star in Mexico. (A Lula for Mexico?) The Economist (US) Nov 15, 2003 v369 i8350 p36US (1037 words) 15 minutes with ... Sergio Sarmiento: top observer gives take on elections, languishing reforms and political heavy hitters. (Interview)(Interview) Armando Saliba. Business Mexico August 2003 v13 i8 p8(4) (2746 words) Mexico's identity crisis. (The PRI Strikes Back) Addison De Witt. The New Leader Sept-Oct 2003 v86 i5 p15(3) (2194 words) Mr Fox and Ms Fix; Politics in Mexico. (The new power in Mexico's Congress) The Economist (US) August 30, 2003 v368 i8339 p24US (964 words) No jobs=no votes for Fox. (Comment). (Vicente Fox's National Action Party loses public support)(Editorial) Jeff Faux. The Nation August 4, 2003 v277 i4 p8 (782 words) Putting the brakes on change; Mexico's congressional election. The Economist (US) July 12, 2003 v368 i8332 p33US (910 words) Sources of Mexico's migration stream: rural, urban, and border migrants to the United States *. Elizabeth Fussell. Social Forces March 2004 v82 i3 p937(31) (15274 words) Steep slopes of recovery. (bighorn sheep, Mexico) Jeffrey P. Cohn. Americas (English Edition) July-August 2003 v55 i4 p22(6) (3152 words) Migrant membership as an instituted process: transnationalization, the state and the extra-territorial conduct of Mexican politics (1). Robert C. Smith. International Migration Review Summer 2003 v37 i2 p297(47) (17552 words) Mexico--the sick man of NAFTA. Christian Stracke. World Policy Journal Summer 2003 v20 i2 p29(8) (4854 words) Corporatism and democratic transition: state and labor during the Salinas and Zedillo administrations. (Mexico) James G. Samstad. Latin American Politics and Society Winter 2002 v44 i4 p1(29) (11804 words) Attitudes toward democracy: Mexico in comparative perspective. Alejandro Moreno, Patricia Mendez. International Journal of Comparative Sociology Dec 2002 p350(20) (7642 words) Breaking out is hard to do: exit, voice, and loyalty in Mexico's one-party hegemonic regime. Joy Langston. Latin American Politics and Society Fall 2002 v44 i3 p61(29) (12178 words)