Veni Vidi Vicente

What to make of this flap over Mexican President Vicente Fox's recent remarks in Puerto Vallarta? Frankly, I'm not sure.

During a question-and-answer period with U.S. food producers on May 13, Fox decried the American crackdown on illegal immigration by saying,

"There's no doubt that Mexican men and women--full of dignity, willpower and a capacity for work--are doing the work that not even blacks want to do in the United States."

While there's no doubt that Fox scored a perfect 10 on the Dumb-O-Meter (TM) with this utterance, what does it really mean? And what to make of yesterday's obligatory apology and phone calls with Reverend Al and Jesse Jackson?

I think there is a kernel of truth in the notion of Mexican illegals taking jobs which many Americans wouldn't accept, but I am not sure whether this is a racially-driven issue in any sense whatsoever. Moreover, there is something deeply disconcerting about Fox saying that illegals take jobs that "even" blacks would not accept. I'm hopeful that it was just a poor choice of words by someone speaking English as a second language rather than a racist overtone. In fact, emphasis on one non-epithet word shouldn't generally rise to the level of racist-indicator, which in our society it is all too-frequently.

I guess what I find more troubling is Fox's seeming detachment from the notion of legal immigration. While Fox's musings on who takes what jobs is effectively accurate, it certainly shouldn't mean that illegal immigration should be tolerated. Just because Mexican illegals will accept these jobs, it doesn't mean that they should. Just because someone can do something doesn't make it alright. When one considers that illegal immigrants also represent free-rider costs and strains on everything from education to healthcare to auto insurance and national security, it's not all for the good. It seems to me that this should be our deeper concern about Fox's statement.

That notwithstanding, Fox's real PR blunder was in even going there. Now he finds himself being called on the carpet by the Twin Towers of Stupidity, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. Talk about putrid, marginalized figures! First of all, how on earth does Al Sharpton have any credibility after his pompadour, sweatsuit, Tawana Brawley days? How does this man find himself on a stage with Democratic presidential candidates? Why is Vicente Fox accountable to him? Admittedly, dude can talk and sometimes even speaks some wicked truths. But come on. Of course Jesse's got more credibility, but not much.

But why is Fox consorting with and apologizing to these opportunists and not...oh...Condeleeza Rice? Harold Ford, Jr.? Barack Obama? Because it's a sham. And we see this in Jesse's statement that he's "sure" Fox had no racist intent. One wonders if he would have given Trent Lott such a free pass? Of course not, because Jackson's only real credibility among power players is on the international stage. Nothing to be gained from defending a white, domestic conservative. But when it comes to the president of Mexico, you can be sure that Jesse sees future chips that could be called in. In fact, in the Chicago Tribune article he even suggests a meeting with Fox. It's one thing to watch this crap played-out here domestically and watch it further divide our nation. But it's quite another to watch it get sustenance internationally. No shame.