Huntsman's amnesty "Alliance".

Utah's present governor, Jon Huntsman, Jr., a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, plans to present the Western Governors Association with an ambitious program to deal with the immigration crisis. The Huntsman plan would build on Utah's "Alliance for Prosperity" with Mexico, which was announced during Huntsman's mid-July visit to Mexico City.

The "Alliance" was described by the July 14 Deseret Morning News as a "plan to boost economic development and tourism between Utah and Mexico, as well as create new education and cultural exchanges." Plans to have Mexican President Vicente Fox travel to Utah to sign the agreement are on hold, but Governor Huntsman insists "we're going to work toward bringing this plan to fruition whether he visits or not. That [visit] would be a capstone of sorts to this alliance, but it isn't critical to its success."

The issue of immigration--or, as Mexican officials insist on calling it, "migration"--came up in practically every session of Huntsman's four-day visit. The chief concern, Huntsman explained, was to "work on the mobility of the work force"--which would imply measures to accommodate Mexicans working in the U.S. illegally. Under Huntsman, Utah has enacted a measure issuing "privilege cards" to illegal migrants from Mexico, a gesture that was gratefully noted by Fox during his talks with Utah's governor.

Significantly, Huntsman--a former deputy U.S. trade representative--treated his trip to Mexico as a full-fledged summit between "nation-states": "We all need to pull together as nation-states," he declared during a press conference in Mexico. Making repeated reference to the newborn "alliance" with Mexico, Huntsman also listed Canada, India, and China as other candidates for similar "alliances."

Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution specifies: "No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confederation." (Emphasis added.) While it's not clear exactly what model of diplomacy Huntsman is following, it is clear that it isn't compatible with the Constitution.