Calderón: Don't treat immigrants as "hostages"

MEXICO CITY — Mexican President Felipe Calderón took the unusual step Wednesday of injecting himself into U.S. presidential politics, calling Mexican migrants "thematic hostages" of the race and urging candidates not to use them as a talking point.

Speaking at a conference here, Calderón criticized what he called "the growing harassment" of Mexicans in the United States and said his administration will finance a media campaign to underline immigrant success stories.

Calderón made his remarks one day before his environment minister, Rafael Elvira Quesada, is scheduled to release a report concluding that the U.S.-Mexico border wall is damaging the environment.

Calderón's statement on the U.S. presidential race caught many people here by surprise. Addressing delegates at a conference sponsored by the Mexican government agency that assists migrants, he said: "It is my duty to make a respectful but firm call to the candidates of the various political parties in the United States for them to stop using Mexicans in that country as thematic hostages of their speeches and their strategies."

Calderón has frequently criticized U.S. immigration policy, as do many Mexicans. But it is unusual for a Mexican president to make such a direct comment about U.S. presidential campaign strategies.

Given the national focus on immigration, it is unlikely that candidates would heed Calderón's call, Michael Dimock, associate director of the Pew Research Center, said in a telephone interview.

"Good luck," Dimock said of Calderón's plea. "It's a potentially powerful voting issue for a significant segment of the electorate."