President Bush Arrives in Mexico for Summit
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: President George W. Bush is in Mexico on his first international trip for a friendly meeting with President Vicente Fox. The two will spend the afternoon in an informal setting, the Fox ranch, getting reacquainted and discussing a number of issues from trade to immigration to energy policy. Joining us now from Leon, Mexico is CNN Senior White House Correspondent John King -- John.</s>JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Leon, and the first thing up in this hour for President Bush on this visit to Mexico: meeting the president of Mexico's mother. That a sign of the informal nature of this trip, also the friendly tone the new president wants to set as he makes his first trip out of the United States to a key neighbor, in his mind: Mexico. The president arrived here a short time ago, greeted at the airport by President Vicente Fox of Mexico. After the informal discussions, meeting Mr. Fox's mother, getting some gifts presented to him, the two leaders will retreat to Mr. Fox's ranch and have what aides describe as a casual but significant conversations about the key issues in U.S.-Mexico relations. Some of them are very difficult: illegal immigration, for example. More than 6 million illegal immigrants living in the United States. The United States government says more than half come from Mexico. Drug trafficking, of course, another sore spot. Illegal drug trade in the United States $63 billion a year, and the United States government says half of that comes into the United States through Mexico. So that another issue these two leaders want to discuss. On the bright side, trade relations. President Bush holding up U.S.-Mexico economic cooperation as an example of what he hopes to bring throughout the hemisphere during his at least four years in office in Washington. But White House officials saying, don't look for any big breakthroughs on this trip or any major agreements. The two leaders will also discuss energy cooperation. That a little bit more urgent than one might think normally because of the California crisis. Most of all, though, White House aides say this a getting-to- know-you session and that President Bush, as he made his first trip out of the United States, wanted to come to a place he is familiar with from his days as governor of Texas and sit down with a man he is familiar with. He has met President Fox three times before. This, though, of course, their first meeting as presidents -- Leon.</s>HARRIS: All right, John King reporting live this morning from -- this afternoon, we should say, from Leon, Mexico. And John will be here throughout the day with coverage from there.