Vicente Fox Quotes
On one side, citizens have great respect for the United States; they have a great feeling of friendship. That is solid. But in the opposition and in the political arena I often find criticism of the closeness of relations with the United States. That is a reality.
Fox, Vicente, and Rob Allyn. Revolution of Hope: The Life, Faith, and Dreams of a Mexican President. Viking, 2007.
There is one condition for us to have healthy relations with the United States. It's called respect.
This is an old and critical concept in American relations with the rest of the hemisphere which Simon Bolivar used to refer to as “respecto.” Americans tend to be relatively unconcerned by what other nations think of America, and since the US has been so successful, it has developed a strong national ego. Other nations, not so successful in modern times, tend to place a great deal of importance on the notion of respect. It is a major factor in most of the world.
This quotation shows American tolerance and freedom of speech even for our head of state.
The Dixie Chicks were a female country singing group that originated in Dallas, Texas. The right wing supporters of President Bush were incensed, and the conservative Talk Show hosts pilloried Maines and the singing group in general. Ironically many of the same conservative pundits who so castigated the Dixie Chicks for their anti-war and anti-president rhetoric several years later were themselves attacking Bush and his Iraq War with far greater intensity and reach than the one small singing group–The Dixie Chicks. This quotation also gives us insight into the Tea Party and ultra Conservatives who were vehement and totally committed to attacking their enemies but who, in a short period of time, could totally flip flop as to who their enemies were. They were quick to jump onto bandwagons, loud and vigorous while they were on, but also quick to jump off.
War had broken out in Europe and Jefferson enumerated a series of actions so that the United States would remain neutral. He was concerned that individual Americans would partake in foreign wars and then be captures of have to be ransomed or would give offence to some other nation who would assume that the American was acting with government approval and was allied with an enemy. The issue of American mercenaries fighting in foreign conflicts has been controversial ever since.
Arguing against proposals to have the FBI apprehend terrorists in foreign countries against the wishes of the sheltering country
India had just recently gained its independence from Britain.
Vicente Fox Quesada GCMG CYC is a Mexican businessman and politician who served as the 62nd President of Mexico from 1 December 2000 to 30 November 2006.
