Kitroev’s personal information disclosure prompted immediate condemnation from the Times. Committee to Protect Journalists and various voices within Mexico. But López Obrador remained indifferent. A few days later, in an exchange with journalist Jessica Zermeño, López Obrador showed no remorse and suggested that Kitroev simply change his cell phone number. When Mr. Zermeño pointed out the possible illegality of Mr. Kitroev’s personal information disclosure, Mr. López Obrador gave a revealing response, saying, “The political and moral authority of the Mexican president exceeds the law.”
The president’s declaration of immunity came under further criticism. “A president who claims to be ‘above the law’ is a president above the law,” wrote journalist Pablo Hiriardo. On Saturday, López Obrador doubled down in a video posted to social media. He targeted Univision journalist Jorge Ramos, then turned his attention to me and revealed what he believed to be my salary at Univision, a private company where I no longer work. On Monday he chased me againThen he brought up the absurd numbers again and claimed that I was getting paid for my job.
It would all be laughable if it weren’t part of a pattern of autocratic media intimidation that puts lives at risk in a country where being a journalist often carries the risk of paying the ultimate price. López Obrador has similarly targeted a long list of writers and researchers, including Mexican journalists Carlos Loretto de Mora and Ciro Gómez Leyva. The latter narrowly escaped death from an assassination attempt in 2022.
López Obrador’s reckless provocations continue to put journalists at risk. However, elections are scheduled for June, and the term-limited president is in the process of stepping down. Is Mexico recovering from an embarrassing episode in its history?
In just over three months, Mexico will choose between two candidates. One is Xochitl Gálvez, a senator chosen to lead a coalition between Mexico’s traditional political parties, and Claudia Sheinbaum, López Obrador’s handpicked successor and political heir. It is.
Galvez immediately spoke out against López Obrador’s vitriol against Kitroev. “Leaks of personal data should be punished according to the law,” she says. posted on social media. “No political project or moral authority transcends individual rights.”
Sheinbaum is rather mysterious, but she worries people. Sheinbaum has worked closely with the president throughout her candidacy. She fully embraces López Obrador’s policies, including a series of controversial reforms recently submitted to Congress that seriously threaten the institutional process of selecting Supreme Court justices and threaten Mexico’s future elections. may impair the integrity of the system. “There is no indication that Claudia Sheinbaum disagrees with this opinion.” [López Obrador’s] A look at the law,” said political columnist Jesús Silva-Herzog Marquez. I have written.
Mr. Sheinbaum appears to share many of the president’s complaints. She followed his lead in harshly criticizing the massive pro-democracy marches that took place in several Mexican cities on February 18th.
Mexico’s presidential election campaign begins on March 1st. Opinion polls show Sheinbaum with a clear early lead. Her next 90 days in the spotlight will see her take on the increasingly autocratic methods of the person she seeks to succeed her, and to whom she owes much of her political career. This is an opportunity to take a clear position. With three presidential debates scheduled and numerous interactions with the media sure to follow, López Obrador’s commitment to fundamental democratic values, which have come under attack during her term as president, will continue. She will have many opportunities to demonstrate her commitment.
Failure to do so will serve as a warning to voters. They hold the future of Mexico’s democracy in their hands.