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Excerpt
Emphasis, links added by American Patrol. If you wish to view the entire article you can purchase it from the invader-friendly Los Angeles Times...
Hahn Makes Bid to Build L.A.'s Ties to Mexico
Diplomacy: The mayor meets with President Fox and other leaders in first foreign trade mission.
By MATEA GOLD
TIMES STAFF WRITERNovember 6 2001
MEXICO CITY -- Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn joined Mexican President Vicente Fox on Monday at the president's home, where the two leaders met for the first time to begin forging a practical working relationship beyond formal diplomatic contacts between Washington and Mexico City.
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"Our city is a Mexican city, and Mexican Americans have greatly shaped our cultural, political and commercial landscape," Hahn said at the news conference, which Fox did not attend. "Our city and this country are bound together in many ways."
Those themes are important for both leaders.
Hahn has been reaching out to the city's Latino communities to patch up relations from his rough mayoral campaign, which saw him handily defeat Antonio Villaraigosa in the former Assembly speaker's attempt to become Los Angeles' first Latino mayor of modern times.
Fox, meanwhile, is attempting to rebuild his country's relationship with its northern neighbor and remake Mexico's international role. Fox actively campaigned for his presidency in California, vowing to be the leader of all Mexicans, including those living abroad, and has visited the state twice since being elected.
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"We certainly don't want to only be remembered for [Proposition] 187," Hahn said in a brief interview between meetings. "I think the message is we're looking for more opportunities to strengthen friendships."
The mayor told Mexican officials that he wants to be a strong advocate for immigrant rights in California, an issue he has not raised much at home in Los Angeles. He told Fox that he called Gov. Gray Davis several times in recent months to urge him to support two bills that would assist Mexicans living in the state. One will allow children of immigrants to pay state tuition to attend California colleges, and another would permit immigrants applying for legal status to receive driver's licenses.
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