More Republicans in Mexico
El Universal reports that Republican PR consultant Rob Allyn has been retained by President Vicente Fox to do something about the Republican immigrant-bashing taking place north of the border:
Fox cannot seek re-election next year, and his legacy may rest in part on his pledges to secure an agreement with the United States to grant legal status to the millions of Mexicans living and working illegally north of the border.
So last week he turned to the political operative who helped him topple the nation’s longtime ruling party to win the presidency in 2000.
Rob Allyn helped George W. Bush defeat Ann Richards for the governorship of Texas in 1994. Three years later, Allyn saw another potential winner in Fox, then governor of Guanajuato state. He agreed to join Fox’s fledgling presidential campaign, but only in secret.
For three years, Allyn worked clandestinely, helping craft Fox’s message of change, as well as his TV commercials, his polling and his wardrobe. Allyn made dozens of trips to Mexico, traveling under one of three pseudonyms.
Given the damage the anti-immigrant legislation is going to do to the recent Republican gains in the U.S. Latino vote, it’s not just Fox’s legacy Allyn will be looking to protect. It’s the legacy of George W. Bush as well.
[Update:] Latina Lista blogs about Latinos’ reaction to Fox’s hiring of Allyn.
