Mexico's tourism minister says Colorado jobs depend on trade with Mexico

DENVER -- Trade between Colorado and Mexico is big business.

"In Colorado we have a trade of close to $3 billion," Mexico's Minister of Tourism Enrique de la Madrid Cordero told Anne Trujillo on this week's Politics Unplugged. "You sell us $1 billion and that represents close to 88,000 jobs in Colorado that just because of the exports that are done into Mexico."

De la Madrid Cordero also said that U.S. trade with Mexico helps keep prices down, specifically on clothing and furnishings.

The tourism minister added people in Mexico are keeping a close eye on the presidential election in the U.S.

He says while one candidate has been more aggressive toward Mexico than the other, both have said things about his country at times that have not always been flattering. However, de la Madrid Cordero said they are taking a "wait and see" approach to how the results of the election impact the actual relationship.

"First we have to wait and see who wins. Second, we have to wait and see how many of the things that have been said in the political campaign are really going to be part of a policy going forward," de la Madrid Cordero told Trujillo.  "What is relevant is for both of us to know that this relationship is very important, that the American economy is much more dependent on Mexico than what people are aware."

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You can see more interviews from Politics Unplugged, including interviews with candidates and supporters of many of the ballot issues, on the Politics Unplugged web page.