Mexico's lobbying strategy for trade talks with the United States is targeted at Republican members of Congress from seven key states, Reforma newspaper reported Monday.
According to the report, the Mexican government is targeting lawmakers from Arizona, Texas, South Dakota, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri and Michigan, most of them red states whose economies rely on exports to Mexico.
The lawmakers include top Republicans like Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who's played a balancing act on NAFTA, supporting President Trump's call to renegotiate the agreement on one hand, while defending Iowa corn export access to the Mexican market on the other.
Mexico's Secretariat of the Economy, which is in charge of trade policy and negotiations, issued its goals for lobbying firms to push the country's agenda.
"It is necessary to generate Republican allies in the Capitol who will contribute to Mexican interests," read the requirement, according to Reforma. "Especially in those states with a Republican majority in which exports to Mexico are more significant."
Mexico has signed agreements with Washington-based firms Kit Bond Strategies and FT Consulting to further those Capitol Hill relations, Reforma reported.