Pure political posturing, is all that Trump visit to Mexico ever was

Fact: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who has targeted Mexicans in the United States as a way of gaining the votes of nativists come Election Day, was in Mexico City on Wednesday and appeared with President Enrique Peña Nieto.

TRUMP: Talking tough, or trash, with Mexico

Fact: There are no other facts. Or at least none that matter.

BECAUSE THE WHOLE point of the event was for everybody involved to be able to tell stories about how tough they were in the presence of the enemigo.

What really happened? Who knows!

In reality, probably nothing of substance happened. The meeting was purely about creating a situation that would allow everybody involved to tell stories meant to make themselves look great.

Which means the relations between the United States and Mexico aren’t likely to be impacted in any significant way by this meeting. It might as well have not happened.

THERE ARE THOSE who want to believe that Trump went to Mexico to try to temper the hostile rhetoric he has spewed throughout the campaign season – from the fact he kicked off his campaign by making denigrating comments about Mexicans in this country to his constant stupid talk about wanting to erect a barricade along the U.S./Mexico border.

It is very clear that the Mexican-American segment of the electorate is all riled up to vote against Trump, and will also include those of other Latin American ethnicities in solidarity against The Donald.

Peña Nieto was more than willing to have a meeting with Trump so he could say later how he told him off and stood up for his people – even those expatriates now living in the United States because the opportunities for a worthy life in the home country were just too lacking.

PENA NIETO: Smacking down, or wimping out to, Trump

While Trump wants to be able to say how he faced off with the Mexican president and told him in no uncertain terms how Mexico WILL BE PAYING to build that Trump-desired wall and how he had better learn to like the idea.

WHAT AMUSED ME about this event in Mexico City was that there really wasn’t an effort for the two men to talk. The language barrier was in place.

The press conference format was in Spanish, and Trump didn’t make any effort to speak en Español. They were talking past each other. They could just as easily have been talking about Mexican League baseball batting averages or the measurements of the latest Miss Mexico in the Miss Universe competition, and it would have had the same significance as any talk about the issues.

I found it interesting that Peña Nieto made a point of saying Trump never brought up talk of “the wall” during their time they were face-to-face. While Trump insists he did.

Of course, he waited until after he was back across the border and in Phoenix – speaking English again and talking to a gathering of electoral fanatics who will want to believe anything Trump chooses to tell them.

BECAUSE THERE WERE those people who complained how Trump didn’t bring along any of the reporter-types who have been traveling about the country to cover his campaign. Likely, Trump didn’t want any outside observers trying to interject fact into the tale he wanted to tell.

Which was of a weak, meaningless nation being put in its place by none other than Donald Trump himself.

While Peña Nieto wants it known that Trump is nothing more than a loudmouthed Yanqui, an out-and-out blowhard and un gringo pendejo.

Which makes it seem that the sad truth of this confrontation is that U.S./Mexico relations are probably about as low a priority for Trump if he were to become our nation’s president, no matter how much nonsense rhetoric he spews about the issue in coming weeks.

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