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📈✝️ Freight, Faith, and the Future 🌐👩‍👧

📈✝️ Freight, Faith, and the Future 🌐👩‍👧

As Arizona rises in global trade, a new pope reshapes the Vatican, and Mother’s Day bridges two nations—North America’s story is being written from the border out.

Marco Lopez
May 12, 2025

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What’s New This Week

Good morning, this week, U.S.–China trade talks heat up in Geneva, a historic American pope is elected in Rome, and Democrats shift their border messaging ahead of 2026. We explore Arizona’s role in global supply chain realignment, the Vatican’s new Latin American lens, and the cultural duality of celebrating Mother’s Day on both sides of the border. From faith to freight, we break down the biggest forces shaping the future of North America.

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Inside Special Sections

Trade Winds: From Nogales to Geneva — What the U.S.–China trade fight means for Arizona, Mexico, and the future of supply chains.
Power Move: From Chicago to Lima to the Vatican — How Pope Leo XIV’s rise reflects the growing voice of the Americas.
The Border Buzz: Two Days for Mom — Why Mother’s Day is celebrated twice in border communities, and what it says about binational life.

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The Quick Courier

What Direction Will Pope Leo XIV Take the Catholic Church?
As the first American-born pontiff, Pope Leo XIV brings a bold new tone to the Vatican—blending U.S. pragmatism with Latin American pastoral experience and raising hopes for reform from the pews to the borderlands.

Democrats Ordered To Ditch Biden-Era Immigration Narrative
Party operatives are urging a shift from empathy to enforcement—pushing Democrats to emphasize reducing border crossings over migrant compassion as they brace for a tough 2024 fight.

Habeas Corpus Under Fire as States Challenge Federal Power
Once a sacred legal safeguard, habeas corpus is now at the center of escalating battles over immigration, state authority, and the limits of federal control.

What the Hell Are Rare Earth Elements—and Why the U.S. Is Scrambling for Them
With China controlling over 85% of rare earth processing, the race is on to secure domestic supply chains—making projects like the solar-powered cobalt plant in Yuma a national security imperative, not just an investment.

Smart Supply Chains: How Tech Is Transforming U.S.–Mexico Commerce
From AI-driven logistics to cross-border blockchain tracking, technology is turning the U.S.–Mexico trade corridor into a next-generation engine of efficiency—and redefining what resilience looks like in a post-China world.

Mexico Says Trump Tariffs Won’t Stop Nearshoring Surge
Despite tariff threats, Mexico is doubling down on nearshoring—with industrial parks booming and global manufacturers betting the U.S. won’t walk away from its most strategic partner.

Trade Winds

From Nogales to Geneva: How Border States Like Arizona Can Shape Global Trade Realignment

Global Trade: Local Impact

This week, U.S. and Chinese officials met in Geneva to ease tensions in what has become the most aggressive tariff escalation in years. While the headlines focus on what happens between Washington and Beijing, I’m focused on something else entirely: what happens next in places like Arizona.

Having served as mayor of a border city, chief of staff at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and now as CEO of Intermestic Capital, I’ve spent my life watching how global power struggles hit hardest at the regional level. In border states like Arizona, the ripple effects are never theoretical. They show up in freight delays, factory closures, price hikes, and lost opportunities.

The Geneva talks matter—but they’re only part of the story. What we do here in North America, and especially how we invest in infrastructure, innovation, and binational partnerships, will ultimately determine whether we seize this moment—or get left behind by it.

Global Decoupling, Regional Opportunity

As the U.S. and China edge closer to long-term trade decoupling, North American supply chains are under pressure to realign. This is where Mexico becomes central—not as a fallback option, but as a strategic partner with the potential to anchor a more resilient, secure, and efficient regional economy. That opportunity passes right through Arizona.

Over the past few months, I’ve met with investors, manufacturers, and officials across Arizona, Sonora, Jalisco, Puebla, and CDMX. They’re all asking versions of the same question: Can we really shift supply chains away from China—and if so, are we ready to lead?

My answer is: yes, but only if we act with urgency.

A Critical Minerals Case Study

Nowhere is this clearer than in the critical minerals sector. Through Intermestic Capital, we’ve partnered with EVelution Energy to build the first solar-powered cobalt processing facility in the United States, located in Yuma, Arizona. It’s a project that was born out of the exact same forces being debated in Geneva—America’s overreliance on Chinese-controlled critical minerals and the need to build secure, domestic alternatives.

But this project isn’t just about cobalt. It’s about how regional innovation can respond to global challenges. We’re leveraging solar energy from the desert, binational logistics infrastructure, and North American capital to deliver a project with global implications. This is what it looks like when border states step up.

What Arizona (and North America) Needs Next

The decisions being made in Geneva will shape the rules of engagement. But the real power move is being made by border states like Arizona, Baja California, and Nuevo Leon—where manufacturing, minerals, and migration converge.

If we want to lead in this new era of trade:

Arizona must scale its infrastructure to handle more freight and investment.
Mexico must strengthen regulatory clarity to give nearshoring momentum staying power.
Binational public-private partnerships must be deepened, not just for trade, but for workforce development and sustainability.

The world is looking for alternatives. And Arizona—with its ports, people, and proximity—is uniquely positioned to deliver.

From Global Friction to Regional Leadership

The Geneva negotiations may cool the flames of a trade war, but they won’t solve the deeper question: Who leads the next chapter of global commerce? From where I stand, it won’t be just the superpowers who decide—it will be the regions bold enough to respond.

In Arizona, we’re ready. But leadership is a choice. And this moment demands one.

Power Move

From Chicago to Lima to the Vatican: Why Pope Leo XIV Reflects the Rising Power of the Americas

Pope Leo XIV

This week, history was made—not in Geneva or D.C., but in Rome.

With the election of Pope Leo XIV—Robert Prevost of Chicago—the world saw the rise of the first American-born pope. For over a billion Catholics, it’s a spiritual milestone. But for those of us shaped by life at the intersection of nations, cultures, and migration—it’s also deeply personal.

Pope Leo XIV was raised in the Midwest, served as bishop in Peru, and walked with the people long before he stood before the cardinals. His journey—from Chicago neighborhoods to Latin American communities—mirrors the lives of so many across Arizona, Sonora, and the broader Americas. It reflects a generation raised with two languages, rooted in faith, and shaped by the immigrant experience.

As someone who grew up on the U.S.-Mexico border, who worked in federal government, and who now leads cross-border investment efforts, I see his rise as more than symbolic. It’s a signal of the Americas’ growing moral, cultural, and geopolitical influence in a world searching for new leadership.

What matters most is that Pope Leo’s values—human dignity, compassion for migrants, and justice for the overlooked—aren’t abstract. They are priorities that echo the same values we try to build into our policies, partnerships, and even investment strategy. Whether I’m working on a cobalt project in Yuma or collaborating with Mexican civil society, the message is the same: leadership rooted in service is more urgent than ever.

The Catholic Church just acknowledged what we in the Americas already know: our voices matter. Our values are global. And our time is now.

The Border Buzz

Two Days for Mom: What Mother’s Day Reveals About U.S.–Mexico Cultural Rhythms

Happy Mother’s Day x2

If you’ve ever lived near the border, you know this week doesn’t have just one Mother’s Day — it has two. In Mexico, May 10 is a fixed day of celebration. In the United States, it’s the second Sunday of May. That means for many families in places like Arizona, California, Texas, and along the Sonora and Baja borders, Mother’s Day comes with a double dose of love, flowers, and family meals.

I’ve seen this firsthand. Growing up in Nogales, we celebrated both days in our home. My mom would get calls from relatives in Mexico on the 10th and another round of brunches and gifts that Sunday. Some families even cross the border just to be together for both.

But beyond the calendar, these two dates represent something deeper: the way culture travels across borders, adapts, and still holds firm to its roots. In Mexico, Mother’s Day is sacred — schools host elaborate celebrations, mariachi bands fill city plazas, and it’s one of the busiest restaurant days of the year. In the U.S., it’s often more commercialized but still cherished — a moment for brunch, flowers, and Hallmark cards.

For families straddling both countries, it’s not about choosing one date over the other. It’s about honoring motherhood in two languages, across two nations, and in a rhythm that only makes sense in a binational life.

That’s the beauty of our border communities — they don’t just sit between two countries. They live in both. And when it comes to celebrating moms, they do it twice as well.

Power Poll

Do you believe the U.S. should create a more streamlined legal pathway for immigrant workers in essential industries like agriculture and manufacturing?

Immigrant workers are vital to the U.S. economy, yet policies remain outdated. Should the U.S. create a clearer legal pathway or tighten restrictions? Vote now!

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Thanks for reading this edition of my newsletter! I'd love to hear from you. Share your thoughts about what you think are the most critical issues that need to be addressed. Email me at [email protected] or connect with me on social media using the hashtag #Intermestic.