Texas Observer's LIES about Mexico EXPOSED - Episode 00

Hello and welcome to Soberanía the  Mexico Politics podcast. I'm your co-host, José Luis Granados Ceja, and we're  here to introduce this brand new podcast to you, our audience. The aim of this podcast is  to help English language audiences better understand Mexico. It's politics, the players and  the political process happening in this country. Known as the 4th transformation. We're going  to hear news and analysis about Mexico from a grassroots and leftist perspective and what  we're looking t

o do is to counter some of the false narratives and framing about the country  that are coming from mainstream media outlets and forward correspondents working here a little  bit about myself. I'm a Mexican born journalist living and working in Mexico City. I also work  with Venezuela. Analysis As a writer and host of their podcast and I'm writer and editor of the  Mexico Solidarity Media. Website This podcast is part of the Mexico Solidarity Project, which is an  effort to try to bridge the gap

between people and the United States, Mexico and elsewhere so that we  can better understand what our struggles have in common. And it has various different instruments.  The new website that I just mentioned, the bulletin. This podcast, and I'd like to actually  hand it over to my co-host Kurt Hackbarth, to introduce himself and speak a little bit about why  he's here as well. Participating in this program. Hi, Jose Luis. Thanks very much. My name is  Kurt Hackbarth. I'm a writer and journalis

t, playwright, translator and a long time resident  of Mexico, living here for 25 years. And I'm based in the city of Wahaca in the South of  Mexico. I'm very happy to be Co hosting. Of this podcast. Precisely for what Jose Luis just  said, there are so many false narratives about Mexico flying around, especially in this period  of what's known as the 4th Transformation English language press on the 4th transformation has  been deplorable, as it is about Latin America in general. Right. And one

of our jobs here is going  to be dispelling these false narratives and giving another perspective, right. I think this is a very  important task, and it's a very important time as both countries are going to be heading into  election campaigns in 2024 when what is already a distorted narrative is going to be. Or is set  to be even more distorted now. Mexico is probably from the US point of view, the closest, and also  the most most misunderstood country, right? So I think there's a lot to discus

s culturally,  politically and other. There's a lot of reasons for this. One of them is simply linguistic.  Another one is cultural, right? Another one is. Simple disinterest, right? And another one is  a basic journalistic line in the United States and in Great Britain. Other English language countries  that simply disparages Mexico and so simply cannot see the transformation of the country is going.  Through right now, so we have got 2. Very clear examples of that just starting this week. But

I'm  gonna let Jose Luis take over and get us started. Yeah, we decided to go ahead and get  this program started because we saw. This quite. Atrocious article, I think,  is the word from the Texas Observer, which actually builds itself as a progressive  outlet and actually prepared an editorial comment that I wanted to open this program with and read  with you as we begin this program. So how does it come to pass that a self-described progressive  news outlet ends up regurgitating the talking p

oints of Mexico's? Right wing opposition? This  month, the Texas Observer read an interview by Lease Digger with the Bakers Institute, Tony  Bayen about Mexico's upcoming 2024 election, and a cursory glance at Bayan social media would  make it apparent to even a casual observer of Mexican politics that began closely, sympathizes  with the right wing opposition in Mexico, so a neutral observer. He is. But the problem is not  Iams easily but debunked lies. We're used to those a far worse crime, in

my opinion, is diggers.  Astounding ignorance in this article. It isn't just that she allowed by and to disseminate his  falsehoods about the state of politics in Mexico, but her framing and his about his comments  was. Wildly off base. In her first paragraph, literally from the outset, Digger presents  readers with a bold face lie, saying that Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has  quote, insisted he will not accept defeat for his hand chosen successor. End Quote. So first  of all,

Claudia sheinbaum, the candidate for the progressive left for Modena's party, was not  chosen by the vassal, which is the hand picking by the outgoing president of tradition by the former  ruling party here in the Paris, but rather through a transparent process of national polling. That's  something actually that cannot be said about the opposition. Sajid galvez. Second, nowhere. As  AMLO said, he will not accept defeat and I tried to find any comment that made a suggestion to  that. It is comp

letely an. Why would he say that anyway? He doesn't need to worry. Sheinbaum has  consistently been pulling between 30 points ahead of her rightest opponent. The preban candidate.  So she got this. And Digger has fallen hook, line and sinker for the opposition's framing of  the election as a battle between the Pro Democracy Galvez and the authoritarian Morena party. The  truth is, nothing could be further from the. Mexico's previous neoliberal model of democracy,  the parties, created enormous i

nequality, and this facts dissatisfaction amongst people  under Lopez over the country, citizens have had their faith restored in democracy. A study  by the Pew Research Center found that in 2017, which is a year before amino one, only 6% were  satisfied with the state of Mexican democracy. And since then, since 2018, since the arrival of the  4th transformation, the Lopez Obrador government, that figure has skyrocketed. We've seen the  historic investments in the country's poorest region, right

s based and. Universal approach to.  Social programs millions lifted out of poverty. A huge swath of the country that once felt ignored,  now feel seen. By the man in the National palace. So the evidence is quite easy to see diggers  wanting disregard for what's actually happening in Mexico. Demonstrates astounding ignorance. But is  that all? I suggest that something more insidious may be at play. The right wing. Opposition in  this country knows that if nothing changes. Soon they're going to.

Get trounced in the election  come June. 2nd and so to what I think what we're seeing is an effort to manufacture consent  for foreign intervention to prevent a peaceful transfer of power in Mexico and so by. Suggesting  that amino and shy. And bomb are dictators, and waging enemies of democracy akin to Donald  Trump. Articles like this that were published by the so-called Progressive Texas Observer. Serve  to undermine us and progressive support. For the comrades here in Mexico, that's the aim

to weaken  that support that could come from abroad. Many in Mexico. Interestingly enough, our concern  that the will of voters won't be. Expected, but the truth is that the threat is not coming  from the door or Shaima. It's actually coming from the country's rotten judicial branch of  government, which could overturn the results of what is expected to be a free and fair election.  And this sort of brazen assault on democracy could only come of the past if he was imperialism  gives the green li

ght. And so for that to happen, the true enemies of democracy, the capitalist  class, they must first manufacture consent. So those are my thoughts concerning that article that  I prepared for the Mexico Solidarity Bulletin for our our listeners. Please check out our website,  sign up for the Bulletin comes out once a week. It is available in English or Spanish, whatever  is more accessible for you. But I thought we would start the program with a little bit  of a comment kind of breaking that. B

ut I wanted to. Turn it over. To you, Kurt and. Yeah.  Share your thoughts about this extraordinarily dishonest article. That from the very first.  Letters begins to craft this false narrative. Absolutely. Thanks for that excellent opening  piece. Those of you who've been following my Twitter over the last five years know that  I've, you know, been doing my. Best to hold. English language media to account on Mexico and  you know there's some real doozies out there, but this one is. In the top in

the top rankings,  right? And it's really something that as you said, this isn't some conservative outlet. This isn't,  you know, the Drudge Report or something, Drudge Report, this is, you know, supposedly a liberal,  you know. Publication. So let's hope. Let's pull this up. And uh, let's just take a look. At how  it starts right? 10 selections in Mexico and US endanger democracy right there, you know. They're  saying that democracy is in danger. Why? Well, because they say so. And because the

re's a  conservative caste of people in. Mexico that you know, knowing that. Gonna lose or attempting  to frame this as an election between democracy and authoritarianism, the title plays right into that  right by Lee Solson. Right then if they go down. It's the fact that they. They choose Tony Bayen  as the interview subject. I think tells us a lot that I don't think they're a progressive  outlet. Has any business interviewing somebody who has these kinds of credentials?  I mean, like I said in

my statement, it's evident that this figure clearly  sympathizes with the opposition and. And how could you not know that?  How could you not, even if. OK, let's give. Let's give these Olson  the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she doesn't speak Spanish. Maybe she  doesn't read Spanish, you know, and. He's there to. Here you can have those tweets translate it.  You can have anybody's tweets translated you. A cursory look at Payano's Twitter feed, which show  that he is, you know, a raging rampant o

pposition figure. Right. And that's just one thing, right?  Where does he work for? Who does he work for? the US Mexico Institute. Of the Baker Institute named  after former Secretary of State and Oil man James Baker. Right. What is the Baker Institute? Who  funds the Baker Institute? These are things you can find out in just a minute of Googling.  Right. Who funds the Baker Institute? Look at this. Kimberly-Clark of Mexico. The found  the. President of Kimberly-Clark of Mexico, a former preside

nt, is Claudio Gonzalez,  right, whose son, Claudio Eckis Gonzalez, a classic junior, is the leader of the  anti Lopez Obrador opposition faction in Mexico. So Kimberly-Clark, Mexico from the  leading opposition plant family in Mexico. Not, you know, not not just the leader. He is  the mastermind behind the opposition. You know, there's a lot of talk even in this article.  They talk about the opposition parties coming together in a coalition. It's I equals to call  that coalition of forced marri

age. You know, I think one of the. Things that people. Should keep  in mind when it comes. To Mexican politics is that the? Election of Lopez Obrador vote in 2018. Left  the opposition total disarray and they haven't been able to pick up the pieces since, and So  what have they been doing? They've been listening to this guy who's been cutting checks and forcing  them to work together. What is a bit of a curious. Coalition because you have the pre, the party that  ruled Mexico for 70 years, the r

ight wing and. A broad coalition of opposition  parties, as they call it. You know, I've got it highlighted there. So you see and  please tell us what this broad coalition is. And so you. Have the the you know the pre, the  pan, the right wing National Action Party which you know was first elected at the federal  level under Center Fox in the year 2000. Subsequently there was the 2006 fraud that saw  Felipe Calderon also from the PAN installed into power illegitimately, but he was able  to conso

lidate that fraud and actually be able to govern the country. Despite mass. And  then they have the PRD, which is, you know, it's a rump party. It's what used to be the party  of the parliamentary left in Mexico. But you know, it became consumed by the the political system  in this country that it made. It became yet another actor, this kind of basically looking  for its piece of the pie. There's a reason why Lopez. Thought broke with the PRD after 2012 and  founded more in his own political par

ty together with other Democratic. Leaders inside of this  country, other leftists and other political forces. And so you know, when they talk about  this broad coalition of parties and and and, you know, we can kind of build off on that, that  comment there. I always find it pretty curious the way that US audiences and people like this  author who are relatively not well versed about what's happening in the country. You know. A  thing that is easy for people to miss is that, like I said, it's a

forced marriage.  These parties don't get along. You know, this idea that by coming together, they're  naturally all of their voting bases are going to come together and support whoever it is that  they've decided to. Back is a. Total falsehood. You're asking political parties that were  intense rivals for. Decades, yeah. To cooperate, you know you it's very difficult to go to the  state of Hidalgo and tell hey panned activists go work and try to convince people to vote  for this pre candidate

or in the state of Mexico elections that we saw recently. Right,  go and vote for this. This candidate that you actually actively. We're trying to stop in the  previous election. It's not that simple. It's not this idea that that we've come together and then  it's going to translate. In fact, I'm sure we'll get into this later. Polls actually suggest that  even united, they would actually get less of the vote if they were then that they actually got  in 2018. If they had brought it all together.

And I think the key thing too,  Jose Luis is that the PRI right, the hegemonic party that you know, ran  Mexico into the ground over 70 years, right. And the pan, the Catholic  real right wing ideological party, they always tried to. Play off the fiction that  they were really independent separate parties, right? And they are and they stand of any party  wants to fight with the other ones to win. You know, gain ground and turf and and. All that but.  Lopez Obrador was very clever and calling. H

im the prion. Right the PR. Ian. Basically saying that  you know. They're two. There are two parties that fight each other, but you know, behind the  scenes it's the same. It's the same thing. Right. Yeah. And we have. To remember right like  2000 is. Celebrated ohh the the. The the moments of Mexico's. Democracy, you know, finally.  The pre is voted out. People don't. Remember that Vicente fox? Needed the pre to govern he.  Made deals with the pre leadership back in the day to be able to pass l

egislation to work  with them through the Congress. The pre end was born basically. Yeah in the late 90s there  was already a consensus around neoliberalism, but then it really began. Same kind of formalized,  with the election to be sent to Fox and has been. That's the case since, which I think and also the  the clearest manifestation of that most recently, aside from the fact that they're working  together as a coalition of opposition parties, was the. Back to from Mexico. That was  agreed to

in 2012, shortly after the election of Enrique Pena Nieto. That saw the  return of the pre to the Mexican presidency. And a whole raft of neoliberal reforms. So there. There's, there's your. Broad coalition,  right? According to the Texas. Observer the PR. High the pawn and what's left  of the PRD after Lopez Obrador left it, the PRD could disappear after the election.  I mean, they're they're down at the threshold level of disappearing as a party, so that's  the broad coalition. I just wanted t

o go back to Baker for a a minute here. Yeah, and  then I wanted to talk about something else. Ohh so. In the in the piece. So I'm going to share  my screen again so that the Kimberly-Clark of Mexico, right, which is the number one  opposer of of of Lopez Obrador in Mexico, right, who else funds this US, Mexico Institute,  British Petroleum, right. Look at this Shell Oil, right? Let's keep going down. Right. Western  Union. I mean, Halliburton is on there. Other Koch Institute is on there. Right

. Merrill Lynch.  Right. This is not as their website claims it to be. A nonpartisan institute, the Baker Institute,  which is based at Rice University, is the think tank for energy interest. In United States, it  brings together energy interests. What is the one policy that has really set out set out? Set apart  Lopez Obrador and his five years in power. So far, the energy reform which strengthened the  public sector control over the energy sector, do you think? Shell Oil liked that reform up 

here. Do you think BP was a fan of that reform? Do you think the Baker Institute is is remotely?  Impartial or objective? Of course not. Actually, what they just did is they set out a report,  you know, supposedly saying that Morena is going to be in cahoots with organized crime in  the presidential election coming up. No evidence, no nothing. But what happens is they put out  this report. Right. Then let's go back here. Tony Payan goes out and gives this interview  to Leez Olson and the Texas O

bserver. Right. And since the. The thing morning is going  to be basically allied with organized crime because their interests are the same, right? But  before we get. To that, this broad coalition of parties have joined together support a popular  alternative candidate, Senator Sochi Galvez. OK. That's news to me. I have no idea she was.  Popular because nobody in. Would even try. To allege that, and this is what I'm talking  about with kind of like basic journalistic due diligence, OK? You int

erview someone, but you  one would imagine that Leez Olson wrote this introduction before the questions started.  So do a little, do a little do 5 minutes of Google before you publish this. Do 5 minutes of  Google. I found this right here. If you can see the screen in 30 seconds it now even if you  don't speak Spanish, translate the pen. OK. You don't need to translate numbers.  I think they're. Clear as day there. You don't need to translate numbers, so it says  opinion and knowledge. What is y

our opinion of Claudia Sheinbaum? Who is the candidate for  Morena? Right. The center left candidate? She has a 50% approval rating favorable.  It's a cognate with English, not that hard, a 34% this favorable or unfavorable rating.  So she's plus. 16 right and this is from El Financiero, which is a conservative publication.  I deliberately chose a conservative publication. This is what a conservative publication is  saying. Other publications would say even more. So according to the Financiero,

Sheinbaum  has a 16 + 16. Right. Let's go over here to Social Galvez. Sachin Galvez. The red line is  unfavorable. She's got 50% unfavorable ratings. For everything for her except  it went up. It went up when she was first introduced as the opposition. Between October and December. Hannity, one of the things that they use to  try to shield themselves from criticism that she was an unpopular candidate, is that no,  no, no. The country is just unfamiliar with who she is. You know? Claudia shy, mum

.  She's been a national spotlight. She has the help from the president who talks about  all the time, but nobody knows who she is. As soon as they get to know her, we'll  see those numbers. Go up and in fact, the opposite has happened. The more they get  to. Tell her they realize they don't like her. Because why? Because she isn't a representative  of the popular sectors of this country. Despite these slick marketing campaign efforts to try  to, you know, sell her like that to the public, espec

ially the international audience.  You know, there was this Al Jazeera. Right. Report when she was first selected. I'm not gonna  say elected selected as the opposition candidate. It's so like right, because there was no  internal democracy in her selection, no. And they and one. Of the words that the that the  correspondent uses is that she's. Given a shot in the arm to. A more of. An opposition has she she  is. Not a popular figure. She is somebody who is seen as very much a representative of

that old  regime of those old political parties where. She was in the. Pan governments  right foxes and calderons, right. Exactly. Fox invites her to be part of his  cabinet. Suddenly she has some national spotlight, but since then, politically, she basically hasn't  really achieve. Much he tried to run for governor in the algo lost. She ran for borough mayor here  in Mexico City and a middle class area of town. Milago. She won there, but then quit despite  promising she wasn't going to leave fo

r another political post because she was offered a basically  free Senate seat as a member of the party. List to go sit as a senator for the pen, and that's what  she's been up to basically since. Can there really be said to she speaks of any initiatives? No.  She's mostly known for her theatrics. Which don't actually sit that well with a population that  is more politically engaged than ever, right? She the other, you know, last year comes out in  a dinosaur suits saying that one of Lopez of. S

ure. Yeah. Those reforms was. A you know?  Throwback to the Jurassic era, and sure she got some laughs out of it.  But that's not a serious candidate. The population wants somebody to actually  speak to their needs. And speak to their aspirations and somebody who's doing. Shows  like that address. Up in a dinosaur outfit, chaining herself to a seat to prevent the normal  order of business from proceeding. You know this stuff that people were familiar with, they  didn't really like. And then the

more they learn, they more learn about her background, the shady  deals that she was engaged in while in US. This is all of your series of scandals, right? It's one after the other and and  even if she was free of scandals, it's gaff after gaff, after  gaff on the campaign trail you. Know what she actually said? He's very. Look, I had tried to privatize the private sector. That's right. That was the most  recent one, right? You know, she was she was. Caught plagiarizing in her,  her final presen

t. Nation and her answer was, oops, I effed up. He he he like quite literally  that was her response which could maybe find that clip later and share it with you in  enough future episode but that gives you an idea of why these numbers are the way they  are. But we haven't even gotten to the poll. Yes, Sir. Numbers. I'll give it back. To you so you  can talk about what are the actual motors? Yeah. And of course, the scandal about building  a house in, you know, without permits, you know, just. T

otally shirking the law. Shoveling  contracts into her businesses. You know, profiting off. Of her public. Positions.  You know, that's just old fashioned Mexican politics dealings and so it's undermined her  attempt to, you know, show herself to be the clean Outsider candidate. Just part of the same.  Process of graft. So let me go up here to the overall poll numbers because this is what the  right wing hates the most. Claudia sheinbaum. And this is a conservative estimate has a 22  point lead

over. So you've got this a 22 point lead. Other polls have her up at 30 points. 30  points, right? Yeah. The election elections in June. Such a Galvez isn't gaining ground. She  might, but as of now, she's not at all so to. Of the. Go back here. And for the Texas Observer  to suggest that such a Galvez is a popular alternative candidate when she's  trailing by 20 to 30 points and has a net -18 approval rating. What  the hell? What the hell? What kind of journalism that you're just doing?  Stenog

raphy for the Baker Institute. That's right. And it's the Baker Institute  that in its report actually went so far as he tried to claim that both blocks,  that is to say, the government block, Morena and its allied parties and the  opposition. Block command around 45% support just going out there and making stuff  up. I really would love to know how they got to that conclusion. I imagine what they're  trying to suggest is that in the last state elections because the opposition candidates  won in

in two in one of the states that. Making stuff up. That's how they. Were able to to justify it, but  it is. A deliberate effort to mislead and a good journalist, even if you're not in a progressive  outlet, should do their due diligence and say, actually, what do the numbers really say? You  know, even if we were to accept that the results of the most recent elections. Tell us a bit of  where the mood is in the country. It would still confirm that Morena is wildly popular, right? You  know, we'

re looking at progressive governments throughout Latin America and people like Gustavo  Petro Barrique. They're ugly. You know, they may have won the Presidency, but they have. Real hell  of a time governing. Whereas in Mexico we've seen victory after victory at the state level since  2018, if voters were really so upset with Lopez, overlord and his style of governance and his  priorities, they would be punishing his party at the polls. And the opposite is true in fact.  You know, they say Mexic

o is now color ginda, which is the the color of Mona, the political  party. 22 of the 32 federal entities in this country. Are now governed by Moderna. That  is nearly 2/3 of the territorial reach of this country. There are very, very few places  where. Morena doesn't win and in this upcoming election there's going to be a series of more.  They're poised to keep most, if not all, of those governorships. And so if you're going to use  that kind of analysis, forget polls, all right, they're somewh

at unreliable, although we should  be clear in Mexico, polls are generally done by house visits, not by telephone. Which gives  them a little bit. Their rate of of confidence. Then in the place here. And there there is no poll, there is  no poll except for that morning caller, which is, you know, it's got  the very dubious methodology. There's no serious poll that has  such gathers within 20 points. Not no, none. None. I mean it would be if even  if her if she were able to close that gap, it wou

ld be the. Kind of thing. Of legend, right? Election observers would write  about that election for decades to come about how somebody so. Far behind was able  to catch up and win. The truth is, it's very, very unlikely to happen at this point. There's  still a long. Ways to go Election 2 second but. Which is why, which is why of. Course the framing  is now that authoritarian Lopez Obrador, you know, is going to impose his candidate and whatever  else, and it's not going to be a free election be

cause democracy observers are are worried. I  don't know if. We want to go to the NPR piece if we want to comment more. On there's more stuff  to comment on the the Payan Payaso piece there. Ohi I call them payaso as well. I mean we could  go on, right. They they you know there's there's these silly notions about you know that shine  Bomb would would pursue those others hands off approach to cartels and the to allowing migrants  from other countries to cross. That's gone and headed to the United

. States, which is  just like. Curious right with his brain. As if that were what was happening. Yeah, exactly. You know, and the truth is  you speak to migrant rights activists here in Mexico. They wish that. Were  the case, but the truth is, is. Yeah, actually the the opposite is. That the opposite is. The case, unfortunately, yeah. True, it's one place where we could  actually suggest a criticism of Lopez and landlords policies when it comes to  that. But no, they just regurgitate these right

wing talking points, anything to  convince readers in Texas in this case. Absolutely, absolutely. That Lopez Obrador is like Trump, and he  does, and he's he's not. If you've been told he's a progressive, he's not. This is this is  actually totally contrary to to what you believe, and then I'll end on this one because I think  this is one of. The lies that just cannot. Just to add, just to add. To that too, yeah.  Before you, before you go to the next point. The you know, he goes into the hugs,

not bullets  thing and then says this would continue allowing organized criminal groups to control vast  territories and expand their illegal activities. Tony Payan is a pianista. He's from the Pan Party,  the president of his party, Felipe Calderon, in 2006. Coming off of an election which was  stolen and in order to shore up his, you know, his illegitimacy, launched a war on drugs which  killed over 100,000 people. Did not stop the killing and actually. Spread the drug plague  throughout the

country. While his own security minister, Hanaro Garcia Luna, has just been, you  know, a few months ago, convicted in a New York City court of being in hot with. Some little  cartel. Windsor, right? Who allowed organized criminal groups to expand their activities? The  Calderon government that was in cahoots with the Sinaloa Cartel, that government, that one.  Right. Where's the context? It's extraordinary, as if Gus and Luna hadn't just been convicted  a few months ago. I'm sorry. Go ahead. Ye

ah. It's sometimes hard to believe. No, you know and I  and one of these, like I've made a comment online about this and I think one of the reasons you  see that people like Bayonne tried to launder these ideas through these gringo journalists  is because they don't know about that context, right? Only they would be willing. To  entertain the notion that the pan the Pre have the moral standing to accuse Morena and  Lopez Obrador of favoring organized crime when it was they who were. Secretly wor

king  together with organized crime groups, right and here in Mexico. We say it wasn't  a war against cartels. It was a war between cartels. And one of them happened to have the  state as an ally. Right. And that's kind of the the the thing that somebody who had done their  homework would have been able to say. Actually, hold on. Are you suggesting that this party is  actually worse than the one who got us into this mess in the 1st place? And I'd love to hear what  Tony would. Respond to a quest

ion. Like that. But I wanted to just get to this last point here,  which I think is really worth breaking down. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Which is that Mexico ended its universal  healthcare coverage system under local despite the health demands posed by the worldwide. Ohh yes, the famous mythical Mexican universal  healthcare coverage. Look at it, they've got it in a big I've got it on the screen here. They've  got it in big big fonts. Tell us about that. It's extraordinary. I mean, first of all there.

  Not a universal healthcare system in this. Country for people who are unaware, I would say. There's  about 3 systems that exist in. This country, there's the. Bottom level public system that is  available to people who don't have any healthcare coverage, be it through work, private insurance  or through the Social Security system. The Social Security system is that kind of second level  it's. The Mexican issue for Social Security. It's the Social Security Institute for state  workers for oil w

orkers and the armed forces each. One has its. Own and you know, I benefit  from having. Coverage through the Social Security system as a result of being. Student and  I've seen in the span of these last five years. The marked improvement in. The public  sector. And then the one. Just to wrap it up, there's the kind of the private one, which  interestingly enough is the one that most of the political class before the arrival  of Lopez Obrador actually belonged to they. Lived on top of society, b

enefiting from.  So she got this. And you know in one of her many gaffs actually revealed. That she pays.  100,000 pesos a month in premiums to her Social Security provider. That's an extraordinary  amount of. Money. When you think about. Like 6006 or $6000, six or $7000. And that's just for premiums. A month for health insurance. Premiums. But this idea. Now, let's did Lopez  Obrador in attempt to reform of that first level system, the the one that is accessible to  everybody who doesn't have c

overage. Otherwise, yes. Did he dissolve Seguro popular, which  was a scheme that was drawn up by the Banista govern. Since this is true. And he tried  to. Implement a system. There were some, admittedly, some mistakes in its implementation.  Within seven, but there was also a rectification right? They they admitted that this was not  delivering the results that they wanted and. Now they're implementing. A new one called EMS to  be an Assad, which is basically trying to bring everybody into the

Social Security. System, but  the this notion that we had it before and this, you know, Privatizers came in and got rid of  it is is an offense to the Mexican population. What people don't realize is that even with  the existing of Seguro popular, most of the working class population of this country got  their healthcare coverage from those. Medical clinics that are attached to pharmacies here. So  in Mexico, most pharmacies will have a subsidized Dr. Attached to the. Pharmacy that for 50 or 60 

pesos will feed you, but it's all a bit of a. It's a bit of a scheme to get them to fill out  more prescriptions and bring more business to the pharmacy, but that ends up being the primary  level of care for most people. Right. It's like. Because so many workers are still in the  what's called the sector informal, right? So they don't have deductions from their  paychecks cause they work independently. They don't actually have. The I had so I had. It's funny. I had to go to. Yes. Yeah. Popular.

Yeah, for. A while back, in those days,  and as Lopez Obrador said it wasn't either. Seguro or popular, right? It was a it was a terrible  system. It didn't have any of its own buildings, so it had to cannibalize buildings from other  health agencies. It had no medications besides paracetamol, right? The staff were nice. The  doctors were nice. But it was a. It was a shell thing. It was a shell thing, you know, they  had no buildings that had no its own. You know, whatever medications it has we

re being. Leached  off through. Through corruption, right? This was in Sabi that this was Sabi. This was popular,  right? So Lopez Obrador came in. Their first attempt was in Sabi. And what happened was in  Sabi didn't have a credential system. Right. So go to popular had that ID system where you had  an ID. In you were. Registered in Serbia was. Which was quite onerous, by the way, I  tried. To sign up and couldn't get it done. Very difficult to get within Sabi. It was  kind of open to all. So

a lot of. People didn't even. Know they had it. Yeah, right. So  when they did that big? They did that big what do you call it? Investigation into poverty  and poverty is reduced in Mexico recently. And they said one of the red flags was  healthcare numbers. It's because a lot of people didn't even know they had the right  to use the inside. And that was also a problem of communication from them. So what they're  doing now is James being the star. Eames is the Social Security system that you men

tioned  in conservative. Days they pawned healthcare off to the states. As a way of kind of trying  to throw the burden onto the states. So what? Lopez Obrador is right. Doing right now is re  federalizing healthcare through Eames being the star as a way to get it all in one in one  place and. Really get people. Covered and that apparently is going to be his big push for the  one of the big. Pushes for the the final year. Right before his final. Year what?  Before we move on? From this topic I d

id want to share personal anecdote.  And my partner ended up having to deal with a pretty major surgery. You  know, she was hospitalized for. Let me yeah. Five nights at one of the public hospitals she  is part of the state workers Social Security Institute and you know, people had told us, no,  you know, spend the money, take her to a private hospital. You don't know what's gonna be the  truth is the service was extraordinary. You know, the attention was generous, the surgery.  Was successful t

he doctor? Skilled never were we asked for one cent of one peso to  pay for bandages or medicine or food, right? Everything was made available to us, and today  my partner is healthy and happy and recovered, and it's thanks to that public system and we  didn't spend a dime that probably. If we didn't have that coverage would have bankrupt us if we  were in a different situation, right, that's. What? You're in the US? Certainly. And I thought about that a lot.  You. Know if, if, if we had been li

ving in the United. States this would have been  for. Us, right. Who knows what could have happened? And so when people talk about Lopez  Obrador and the 4th transformation and all of this kind of stuff, when you read articles  like the ones we've just been breaking down, it really breaks my heart because people  need to understand that the quality of life materially for working class people in this  country like myself has markedly improved. And that's just one example. You know, I  always ment

ioned that I'm a, I'm a student, I'm a master student at the Autonomous  University of Mexico City, a university, by the way, founded by Lopez Obrador when he was  mayor, governor of Mexico City, where I studied human right. I don't pay a dime in tuition. And  in fact, I receive a subsidy from the state to the tune of 14,000 peso. For a month so that it  can focus full time on my studies, that's the. Gas. What? Communism, it's communism. Way to study and that's. Thank you.  So when people. Talk

to me about this is not a. Leftist government it. Makes  my blood boil. Because I'm living it, I am proof that these changes mean of  material improvement in my quality of life and millions of others like  you mention. Poverty since 2018. 5,000,005 million people have  been removed from poverty. That's the size of. The code is this. Some countries government. Yeah. 9 million people since the pandemic because it, you know, it spiked up during the pandemic  as it did everywhere. 9 million just in

a couple of years since the pandemic, 5  million in total since the beginning. He went up there. Of this government. Right. But  that's just cutting checks, according to NPR. We'll get to that one  in a second. I just wanted to mention. OK, I just wanted to mention too that Eames has now  a record of 22 million people registered with the with the so go to social health system. So that's  another, you know that's another point when you. Let's let's get into it. Yeah. Want to talk about? The suppo

sed healthcare  system. That I'm not supposedly ripped up. There's a record number of people in themes  right now, and it's funny too that. Pylons and whole discourse is a right wing discourse, and  then all of a sudden he lurches to the left and criticizes AMLO, supposedly for getting rid of.  Health care where? Are you like the pawns? Never favored universal healthcare, really, because  you know, ideologically, they're all all about, you know. That your private healthcare right,  so now it's,

I'll attack. I'm low from whatever ideology is convenient from the right, right  wing if it's convenient or from the left wing if it's convenient. In the same breath. No  consistency, man. So yeah, let's go ahead to NPR. Yeah. So we saw recently a interview with  their correspondent here, and I'm going to read out and we'll break it down later on what  he said during this program. His name is April. Let me pull it up. So on the screen, so  we can so we can see it here. This is on that WEEKEND ed

ition this last  this. This last weekend, it's. And talking about the the state  of global democracy, if, if, if I'm not mistaken, which  I think is really important. Yeah, so this was. When we think about this. Cause I think Mr. Our friend. Peralta, I knew this was coming. I knew  basically, from starting last year there were there were whispers of it. There was a  really important article by. Arturo Soraka and Victor Victoria worshipped. They talk about  you know this, this threat of authorita

rian regression in Mexico and so that I think This  is why we're seeing it scaling up the part that has been surprising is how fast they've  been getting into it. Of saying that, OK, It's 2024 of the election is happening in Mexico  this year. Let's really start to drag this point home. Mexico is an authoritarian state. Now  it's an autocracy to the to the, you know, let's lump and get in together with all the other  demonized states in Latin America like Cuba, Venezuela, MCGARRAH, Web, Olivia,

etcetera.  Therefore, we need to try to frame this as as a battle. Which actually if if it's important to pay  attention. To this is. The framing that is coming from the US State Department right from Biden's  election. He talked about the need. To restore faith. And democracy that people are losing faith  because it's. Not delivering results, etcetera. Etcetera. And so there's been this. Consistent  effort to try to divide. The world into. Two camps, right? The autocracies and the democracies, 

and anybody who's an. Ally of China and Russia. This also automatically be an autocracy  because, well, declining US hegemony. But. You're either with us or you're an autocracy. Exactly, exactly. You know, this whole idea  of, you know, the the rules based order versus international. The law, as we're  seeing happening in Palestine right now, but anyway to go back to Mexico, here's here's  for all this quote. So look here in Mexico, we're having a presidential election and a lot of  pro democra

cy advocates are really worried. The President here is a populist. Point he can't run  for reelection, but he's handpicked A successor, and he's about to give another goal right before  leaving office, to what he calls reforms to. The Electoral Commission. Essentially, he wants to  gut. Commission and in his term episode, Donna said, forget these institutions the way I'm  going to help people is to take the money we spend on fair elections or on transparency and  give it to the people. And as ad

ministration has actually cut. Checks to everyone. Single  mothers, students, the elderly and right now his handpicked successor, Claudia Sheinbaum,  is leading in the polls by huge margin. Where to begin? You couldn't. You couldn't write  a better parody of crappy Mexico coverage. Like, if you try to sit down and write  a concentrated paragraph of the. Most you know. The wildest parody of bad  election coverage, it would be hard to. Top this this is the espresso  shot of. Bad election coverage.

Yeah. So a bunch of these points  you've already mentioned, right, the hand-picked successor, you mentioned  it twice, hand-picked, hand-picked, right. Which we've already debunked. Yeah, went through a process of five opinion  polls and some of them were by opinion poll companies chosen by her opponents. Right?  Like Marcelo abroad, right. This idea of pro democracy advocates you. Know who are these?  People, right? Just do a little Seinfeld. Right. Who are these people? They've been trying to

  lay the groundwork on this since last year, right when AMLO had a proposal to reform  the Electoral Commission, and if anybody, we don't have time right now, we can maybe do  another program on this if anyone's interested in what that electoral reform was about. I have a  whole article about this. Jacoby. God, that says amino is not undermining Mexican democracy. And I  explained what the electoral reform was about. But you had people like Natalie Kittrell from the  New York Times saying this

is part of a effort to undermine the country's fragile institutions.  Part of the challenge democratic norms across the entire Western Hemisphere. And you had David.  From the Iraq War, Gul saying that liberal democracy is under assault by Mexico's erratic and  authoritarian president and you had Gideon Rachman saying that. I found virtually unanimity right  among academics, business people and political commentators. The countries democracy is now in  real danger. I'm sure there was unanimity a

round the brunch table at the Five Star Hotel Rachman  was staying at. So if you want to find out more about that electoral form, it's right there.  But they've been trying to lay the groundwork on that. Since last year, right. They know they're  gonna lose this election, but the right wing, as things stand now, are gonna lose very badly. So  they're trying to the delegate. Is it using their convenient mouthpieces in the English language?  Press right and this just goes hand in hand with Republi

can rhetoric about wanting to invade  Mexico so it creates A bipartisan perfect storm, right? The Republicans are. That's. And bomb and  Fenton. And the. Liberals are all well, we're all. Worried about Mexico's democratic institutions?  Right. Classic liberal hypocrisy and those just dovetail perfectly, right. So these are the.  Pro democracy advocates that. Are really weird and it's funny that. The former head of  the Electoral Commission, Lorenzo Cordova, has just come out. As an open supporte

r of the  Conservative coalition, and he's going to be speaking at a massive rally conservative rally  in a couple of weeks, right? How's it is? That's right. Next month, he's he's going to be  speaking. That's actually one of one of the more interesting cases of how out of touch. The actual  opposition is what they have to do is latch on to these ideas that are actually even aren't directly  associated with that, you know, would be one thing if they called for a mass demonstration and they  wer

e able to fill the sokolo because, you know, they've convinced the public that there there's  a need for a change. No. What they go on is they say they perpetuate these myths, that it's  necessary to defend the country's democracy. The whole slogan behind this is is mboto  nosaka. My my vote cannot be touched. You know, when there is no danger whatsoever of that  kind of naked fraud in the upcoming election. As there was in 1988, as there was  in. 2006. The vote buying of 2012, right, they know

a thing or  two on that side about frauds. Yeah. Which is, you know, again an example  of how little people actually understand this country to suggest that Lopez  Obrador and his forces are willing to engage in that kind of electoral  sub. Huge is to not understand the history. Right. Or similarly like some  of? The discussion that was happened. It's insulting. It's an insulting ignorance  of history, or just disregarding it, right? You know that this whole week there was  this effort to try to

paint him as being a a government sensor, that he ordered a news anchor  off the air, even though there is literally zero evidence the person who tried to suggest that  hasn't come out to actually say in those words, the president is the reason that I. Was fired  and asked the same. Business decision. Right, exactly. That's that's what I'm referring to, this  idea that Lopez Obrador would engage in the same kind of anti democratic attitudes that he was  the victim of now that he's in power is t

o not understand because of another. And the whole  reason he fought so hard to make it to the. Presidency. You know, it's funny because these two  stories that you just mentioned are very similar. Like Tony Paul Young and the Baker Institute,  you're trying to make something out. Of nothing, right? So they come out with this report with  no evidence saying that Morena is going to be allied with organized crime in this election.  No evidence, but they say. It's it's picked up by the Texas Observ

er and then it's picked  up by the reformer. Newspaper down here. It's a populist, full stop.  That's it. That's all he. Right. Says right. What does that mean? And  then as a team, the anchor says that given the circumstances, given the circumstances  she's being she's changing. You know, she's leaving Millennium, right. And then  millennial comes out here. This is in Spanish. It says basically no. There was a business  decision, but she tries to leave it in the air again to create something ou

t of nothing,  to try to pretend that AMLO ran her out, right. Even former President Felipe Calderon had to walk  back a tweet saying. Look, it's got her fired. No, actually, no. He had to walk it back again.  Attempts to create something out of nothing but. The damage is done right, like this myth is  already out there. It's been perpetrated and I'm certain that down the road someone's  going to point to that as proof. You know, even though the truth of it is actually quite  to the. And like we

said. We've seen these, these, these, these. Conservatives coming  together, Lorenzo Cordova, like you mentioned, is going to be speaking at this right. He's  actually going to be the only speaker at the rally because in the last one that they held,  they had people like Patrice Patrick Baches, who is an active member of the priest speaking and  giving partisan speeches and kind of. You know, destroying that myth that they were  trying to prove? No, this is just a pro democracy movement because

they  know that pro democracy movement, those are the Pro democracy advocates. But as  that's talking about here are the ones that I'll actually have resonance. In the NPR's the Texas  observers, right, these, these, you know these. New York Times the Atlantic Monthly is right. Media outlets in the United States. This is this is the liberal. Media  right. We're even talking about, you know, conservative lies which abound. This  is the, you know. The comfortable liberal media, and I love this on

e too. The way I'm going to help  the people is to take the money we spend on fair elections or on transparency and give it. To the  people what? A third grade caricature like AMLO is going into the Electoral Commission's offices.  He's raiding their Kitty and he's grabbing that money. He's stuffing it in his pockets and  he's going outside and he's throwing it at people in the. Streets because he's a populist.  Right as if Mexico doesn't have a Congress, as if Mexico doesn't have budgetary proc

edures,  as if Mexico doesn't have a committee system that overseas budgets as if Mexico doesn't have  line items for. This thing. Right. It's an absurd caricature that you can get away with  because hell, it's Mexico. Whatever, right? Not to mention. What they call cutting checks is  actually guaranteed, constitutionally guaranteed universal social programs. You know, it wasn't  that long ago that even liberals advocated for universal social programs. Over means tested  and needs based programs

. What he's saying is that I'm going to cut out the bureaucracy. I'm  gonna cut out that middle. Men, which obviously is. Also lends itself to corruption a major.  Issue in this country and I'm going. To give those cash transfers. Directly to the people  and guess what? They're effective. That's part of the reason we've seen. 9 million people no  longer in poverty as part of the reason why. You see widespread support for the government  and its policies, and the Presidents right, especially thin

gs like the pension for  seniors. We're talking about very, very. Yourself in your pension. If you're  over 60 fives, right? Regardless of where you worked or how you work. It's  not like Social Security that you have to have. Paid in a. Certain number  of quarters it's a universal pension. Exactly. Now it's not a lot of money, but  for many people, for millions of people, it's a life changing amount of money,  because that's the difference between being able. To afford your medical.  And pay yo

ur bills or pay the rent, or even things like quality of life,  which I always try to emphasize. You know, thanks to that money, they don't have to eat  rice and beans every day. Or maybe they can go out with their grandkids to dinner once a  month and enjoy that time with their families. Dignity. You're right. They have to feel  like they're dependent on their children. It's it's signaling. All the time, right, exactly. And so if  that's, This is why he's demonized for, for, for creating the be

ginnings, we're  not even done yet of a welfare state, just the the, the very  basic minimums for and this. Is sneering, belittling, idea of cutting checks?  Right is trying to give the idea that everybody's bought. Natalie Kittrell from the New York Times,  when they had that massive rally, you know, in support of AMLO. Last year when Amanda was in  the. March. That was the insinuation that they're all there because they're getting benefits of one  kind or another, right? They wouldn't go of th

eir own free will. As if this isn't a movement that's  existed for decades. Right, that they're all just. Bought off poor people. Yeah, and they're there  for that. Because they're getting their checks. And what happened to man on the street? Reporting?  Because if you went to one of those rallies, you could pick any random person in  that crowd and they will tell you why they're there. And I, you'd be hard  pressed to find somebody who said, well, I'm here because they told me to be here. No. 

Every time I go, I have the simulating deeply political conversation. I remember the last  one where, you know, he's like, yeah, I had. Yeah, me too. To get on the bus. At 3:00 in the morning to make  sure that I was able to be here on time because the truth is, I can't afford to a hotel stay. So  I have to show up here the morning of and I'm, you know, this afternoon I'm getting on a bus  right back. You know, I'm gonna, you know, spend some time and buy my wife a, you know, a  trinket or somet

hing like that. But she understood that I needed to be here. That the point of.  Calling these demonstrations, and maybe we'll wrap up on this point, is to show that there  is it's authentic, right. Polls are one thing, election results are another. But it's one  thing to remember that this is a very deeply politicized population. Now, when Lopez calls for  demonstration and the million people come out. Yes it is. Do you think? That's because they're bought off.  No, it's because people feel tha

t conviction to say I need to be here to show that this President  is, is, is has my support, that he is popular, that it's not an invention I want to send a  message to all those people who are opposing him and his policy. You know that to say  that my physical presence here today is a is a show of support, and it's true. And then  I'm not exaggerating when I talk about half a million people, a million people. I live and  work in Mexico City. I was in the streets. I remember that, that demonstr

ation that he  called in in November of two years ago now where he. Where a million people. Filled the  streets of Reforma. It took him. I think it was 5 hours to walk from the starting point to  the Zocalo because there were so many crowds of people who were waiting for that two second  glimpse of the president to say Hello. And it means a lot to people. You talk to them  and they're like, I was able to, you know, he looked me in the. Eye. He knew I was here,  right? A mill. In people that real

ly shows and I think also speaks to some of the class character  of Moderna and why I think leftist in particular should be paying more attention to this. You  know, I'm old enough to remember Obama's first election and the grassroots organization that he  built inside the United States to get him there. And how he? Deactivated that, deliberately assumed  as he reached the White House, you know, and I know that. I spoke to a lot of. You feel the bankers, right? I'm the only one standing between

you and the  mob, he. Said to the bankers. That's right. That's right. That didn't  happen here. Those those mechanisms for mobilization stayed active and continue  to be active and it's why the President is able to go out there and confront  these adversaries and say to them, no, I am willing to go against your class interests  to defend the class interest of my base. Right. There's a really important saying here. In  Mexico, it's one dopes or another has used historically throughout his. Time

in politics.  Which photos of progress remain, which translates to you for the good of everybody  but the poor. Come first and that's. Can you imagine any Democratic Party politician  saying that they haven't worked in the war on the Democratic Party since the 80s? I think  the Jesse Jackson campaign was one of the. Very much being careful. Last and of course. Sanders, right?  Yeah, but that's just been, that's. Or even wealthier again instead. Just from the Democratic  Party in the US, the idea

of. The poor. That's right. That's right. I  don't. Anyway, just to to, I guess just to to wrap things up, you know. One thing that  we've talked about today has a consequence, right? We are seeing these ideas of Mexico being  an authoritarian state that is backsliding, that it's losing ground when it comes to its  democratic advancements. You know, there's already chatter about this on social media. I  make a point of always kind of creeping into the comments of the forest correspondents who c

over  here. And, you know, they'll make comments about, you know, the same authoritarian backslide  that's happening in the country. And you'll see comments. I'll, I'll. I'll read one here from  a Jason Merriam where he says from where I sit, the next presidential election in Mexico.  Will be about the preservation or demise of democratic function in the country now. I don't  know, Jason. Maybe. Maybe he's well informed. Maybe he isn't. But. And in this case, we can see  that it's already having

that resonance amongst the US. The English language population.  To think that this is actually the case of what's happening in this country when  nothing could be further from the truth. And you know, it's funny these these are paltas  and others, you know from NPR. Making a US salary in Mexico City. Right. Sneering at people saying  that they're getting checks cut. Just imagine the level of sneering. I mean, just like sneering  level 10 right, with your US salary in Mexico, right? Public sect

or NPR. Because somebody gets  a 3000 peso a month pension, how petty. You know, and I think the other point too is, you know that  massive. Rally you mentioned I was there. I was covering it. US correspondents just don't get mass  popular democracy because, you know, the US has two elite parties that at this point probably  couldn't mobilize 10 people between the two of them. Right. There are mass mobilizations in the  US, like Black Lives Matter and others. But these are those are citizens. Mo

vements the parties  themselves have no. You know connection with with, with, with, with the public, so they don't  understand mass popular modules like that, and it scares them. It scares them and they have to try  to find an explanation. So it's. Either just the mob. Right as if it were the French Revolution,  right? The later stages? Or what's the other easy, lazy explanation they're bought off. They're  bought off cutting checks. That's my final point. And I'll so I'll finish with this. To 

our listeners in the United States, there's a lot of exciting things happening here.  There's a lot of things that I think people can take away from it. You know it is. An important  watershed moment for this country to see the end of that neoliberal regime to see these old elite  party, it's the equivalent of the Democrats and Republicans washed out. And replaced by a movement  that at least is striving to create that welfare state that is striving to redistribute wealth  that signals to the to

the population. The state must play a role in the economy. We must rescue  our state oil companies so that we can take the wealth from our natural resources and give it  to seniors. Who don't have a pension and give it to students so they can focus on their studies  and give it to young. People so they can. Have that first opportunity to actually get some  work experience etcetera, etcetera as rights. As rights, as rights. Right  intention of the things are now in the. Constitution is rights, r

ight? Yeah. In the constitution. So instead of viewing Lopez  Obrador as this aberration, this. Pay attention, there's lessons to be learned here. There  are a lot of things that I think activists, in particular leftist, I'm speaking to you,  progressive self identified progressives in the United States. Mexico has a lot of  lessons for the world. And instead of playing along with the state departments  game of trying to demonize this. Express some solidarity. Get involved with the Mexico  Solid

arity Project, sign up for our bulletin, subscribe to our podcast, leave us  a review, share with your friends, read our news articles, everything about us  you can find at Mexico, Mexico, solidarity dot. Thanks very much. And we'll be  seeing you in future episodes. That's right. We're hoping to do this every two  weeks, maybe more as the election comes closer. And please leave us your comments as well.  Let us know what are the kind of topics you want to learn about the next episode. We're gon

na  break down. Who are the candidates? Really. What the selection all about. What are the major  issues? Our aim here is to debunk. Demystify explain Mexico to you. You've been listening  to soberania, the Mexican Politics podcast.