[JURIST] Mexican President Vicente Fox [official profile] on Thursday applauded the US Senate's approval of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 [S 2611 summary; JURIST news archive] that would tighten border security and allow illegal immigrants to follow a path to citizenship. Though Fox has criticized parts of the bill, including a 370 mile fence along the Mexican border [JURIST report] and the potential for the militarization of the border when up to 6000 National Guard troops come in [JURIST report] to help the Border Patrol, he avoided mentioning his protests while addressing California lawmakers [speech transcript, in Spanish] Thursday. Instead, Fox focused on strengthening economic ties between the US and Mexico [JURIST news archive], hoping that investment will help create Mexican jobs and lower the necessity for Mexicans to look north for work. Fox said:

We have pursued this course with the firm conviction that a legal, safe, orderly migration policy with full respect to human rights and labor rights will benefit the security and prosperity of both our nations.