After my Y2K burnout, I drove OTR for almost 2 years. I was in Del Rio or Laredo every week or so, then on up to Toronto.
There was a legal "buffer" at the time that was like an overlap. Mexican trucks could come in, but only so far. You've never seen such junk.
I'm not making any kind of slur; it's a different world down there. It's almost lawless.
You're correct about that. The legals there don't care for the illegals any more than we do.