Seeking to improve understanding, communication, and cooperation between Mexico and the United States by promoting original research, encouraging public discussion, and proposing policy options for enhancing the bilateral relationship.
01/10/2022
Source: Reuters
Mexico’s government on Monday said it would send a representative to the inauguration of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega for his fourth consecutive term in office, after indicating a day earlier that it would not.
Ortega, who in November won an election which U.S. President Joe Biden described as a “pantomime” after the Nicaraguan government’s crackdown on the opposition and critical media, is due to be sworn in for his next term on Monday afternoon.
Source: Mexico News Daily
A three-party right-left coalition that was established to contest this year’s midterm elections will run on a joint ticket in at least four state elections in 2022.
The conservative National Action Party (PAN), the center-right Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the leftist Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) have reached an agreement to contest elections in Aguascalientes, Durango, Hidalgo and Tamaulipas under the Va por México (Go for Mexico) banner.
Source: Mexico News Daily
President López Obrador’s new decree that fast-tracks government infrastructure projects and protects them from scrutiny and legal challenges is part of “a cynical power grab” and possibly an “act of desperation,” according to an opinion piece published Monday by The Wall Street Journal.
The decree, published in the government’s official gazette last week, shields from scrutiny the construction of infrastructure projects in a wide range of sectors by declaring them pertinent to national security.
08/03/2021
Source: The Washington Post
Mexico President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Monday downplayed the abysmal turnout for a national referendum on pursuing ex-presidents for alleged wrongdoing during their administrations.
Only 7% of Mexico’s eligible voters participated Sunday, but the president preferred to focus on the fact that more than 6 million voted, declaring it a “triumph.” Nine out of 10 voted “yes” on the question.
08/02/2021
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Low turnout overshadowed Mexico’s first formal referendum, a controversial vote proposed by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador that he said would advance efforts to investigate and prosecute wrongdoing of several past presidents.
Just 7% or 6.6 million of Mexico’s 94 million registered voters cast ballots Sunday, well below the 40% required by law for the results to be binding, according to preliminary results released by Mexico’s electoral agency. Nearly 98% of those who participated voted in favor of investigating former presidents.
09/22/2020
Source: The Washington Post
MEXICO CITY — For decades, Mexico’s presidents have handed over power peacefully at the end of their six-year terms. And in contrast to some of their Latin American counterparts, they have been left alone to pursue quiet, comfortable retirements, free of the fear of being held accountable for any misdeeds they might have committed while in office.
Now President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is threatening to shatter that tradition, accusing his five immediate predecessors of corruption or unfair economic policies — and seeking public approval to bring them to justice.
12/03/19 – Reuters
By Dave Graham
Mexico’s president conceded on Sunday that economic growth has fallen short of his expectations, but said that wealth is now more fairly distributed as he celebrated a year in office riding high in opinion polls, in defiance of mounting problems.
A year ago, veteran leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador assumed the presidency pledging to raise economic growth to 4% per year. Instead, the economy has stagnated and slipped into a mild recession during the first half of the year.
12/01/19 – AP News
By Amy Guthrie
Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been president of Mexico for a year, after a landslide 2018 vote. He pledged a presidency close to the people, austere, with punishment for the corrupt and greater safety and economic well-being.
Not all has gone according to plan. The country’s murder rate continues to log record highs, while economic growth this year has been flat and borders on recession. Corruption and crime remain difficult plagues to eradicate, though the administration has taken on some high-profile targets.
12/01/19 -The Dallas Morning News
By Alfredo Corchado
As Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador marks his first year in office on Sunday, Mexicans’ romance with the left-leaning populist leader remains strong.
But a new poll conducted by Mexico City’s Reforma newspaper, co-sponsored by The Dallas Morning News and The Mission Foods Texas-Mexico Center at Southern Methodist University, shows signs of fading enthusiasm as the nation faces weariness over shocking violence and slowing economic growth.
11/17/19 – The Sacramento Bee
By Bryan Anderson
South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg said at a Latino forum in Los Angeles on Sunday that he’d be willing to send U.S. troops into Mexico to combat gang and drug violence.
“There is a scenario where we could have security cooperation,” Buttigieg said.
Even so, he added a caveat: “I’d only order American troops into conflict if American lives were on the line and if it was necessary to meet treaty obligations.”
Mexico Institute 