Mexican politics and personalities
One minister is replaced. How many people in the ministry will be moving?[The Washington Post web site seems to have substituted "¿" for the accented vowels in this article. Doesn't speak well for the global awareness of the web editor. Then again, the Reuters report on this story just eliminates all accent marks completely.]
In any case, it looks like movement in the political arena that could lead to a break in the gridlock that has existed since Vicente Fox's election.
Mexico's Calderón Replaces Interior Minister Who Riled Opposition
"President Felipe Calderón replaced Mexico's interior minister on Wednesday, a move political experts say is designed to build better relations with opponents in Congress who stymied efforts to alter the country's economy and judicial system.
"Juan Camilo Mouriño Terrazo [at left], Calderón's chief of staff, ascended to Mexico's second most powerful post after the ouster of Interior Minister Francisco Ramírez Acuña, who had clashed with the political opposition. After being introduced Wednesday, Mouriño Terrazo promised to reach out to all political parties in an effort to reenergize Calderón's stalled agenda..."Further details from a CNN report in November of 2006, indicate that the appointment of Ramírez was controversial from the beginning.
Ramírez Selection Called 'Grave Error'
"A controversial appointment for interior secretary... headlined President- elect Felipe Calderón´s latest round of Cabinet selections, which were unveiled on Tuesday.
"Calderón... tapped long-time ally and former Jalisco Gov. Francisco Javier Ramírez Acuña to head the Secretariat of the Interior, the agency in charge of Mexico´s domestic politics and policy.
"Ramírez Acuña, known for a 'firm hand' on security issues but also accused of human rights violations.."
The new Interior Minister sounds like a US-style politician as well as a member of an "old-fashioned" (European) elite in an article from the Los Angeles Times.
New Mexican interior minister named
"At 36, Spanish-born Juan Camilo Mouriño was already the quiet power behind the throne in Mexico...
"His rise to power, achieved in little more than a decade in politics, is an unlikely story in a country where Spaniards are still linked with empire and conquest...
"Mouriño tied his fortunes to Calderon. He managed the campaign for the 2006 PAN presidential nomination in which Calderon defeated President Vicente Fox's choice as successor, then-Interior Secretary Santiago Creel...
"In the 2006 presidential election, Mouriño ran Calderon's campaign "war room" and was one of the architects of the candidate's stunning come-from-behind victory against leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.
"Even before Calderon took office in December 2006, Mouriño headed his transition team...
"Like the American political advisor Dick Morris, Mouriño used data from frequent polling to shape policy decisions. 'The Calderon people measure things, obsessively,' Daniel Lizarraga wrote in a profile of Mouriño in the magazine Proceso this month.
"In Calderon's inner circle, people celebrate Mouriño's 'cleverness, his political instincts and his ability to solve problems,' Lizarraga wrote. 'Those who are not his friends call him authoritarian, Machiavellian, and say he controls a vast network of influence that includes legislators, affluent businessmen, media moguls, party leaders and governors.'
"Some speculate that Calderon is grooming Mouriño to be president..."
Labels: leadership, Mexico, politics
posted by Ken Wedding @ 9:11 AM
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