Felipe Calderon

Killings Cast Pall on Mexico Drug Plan

jeremiah — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 09:13:37 -0700

The gangland-style murders of three people with ties to the U.S. consulate in this border city have confirmed for many people what residents here already knew: President Felipe Calderón's strategy of sending in the troops to corral drug gangs has failed.

The War on Drugs Needs a Timeout

jeremiah — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 08:52:45 -0700

Image by Sweatshop ProductionsOn Monday, President Obama restated his support for Mexican President Felipe Calderón's aggressive tactics in the fight against drug trafficking. He also reiterated his support for a drug security plan with Mexico that is similar to the failed drug plans of past administrations.

Canada To Train Mexican Officers Fighting Drug Cartels

jeremiah — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 09:57:51 -0700

Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper shake hands during a summit of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America. (Photo by Alfredo Guerrero)Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Sunday that Canada will train Mexican police officers to assist Mexico in its brutal war against rival drug cartels.

The announcement came as the prime minister touched down here for a two-day summit with Mexican President Felipe Calderon and U.S. President Barack Obama.

Mexico President Felipe Calderon Says Drug War Threatens Democracy

jeremiah — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:15:20 -0700

President Felipe Calderon said Wednesday the future of Mexican democracy is at stake in the government's fight against official corruption and organized crime, and he criticized politicians who he said want to return to the era when gangs were tolerated.

Calderon also called for making legislators more accountable to the public, including reducing the number of Congress members while allowing them to serve more than one term and face voters' judgment in re-election bids.

Mexico Decriminalization Bill Passes: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back?

jeremiah — Fri, 08 May 2009 10:57:19 -0700

Discussion growing: Feb. '09 drug policy forum held by Mexico's Grupo Parlamentario Alternativa (grupoparlamentarioalternativa.org.mx/node/227)Late last week, both houses of the Mexican Congress approved a bill that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs.

The measure is part of a broader bill aimed at small-scale drug dealing and rationalizing Mexico's struggle against violent drug trafficking organizations.

Mexico's Congress Hosts Forum on Marijuana Regulation, Decriminalization

jeremiah — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 11:59:34 -0700

While Mexican President Felipe Calderon has proposed legislation that would offer pot smokers treatment instead of jail, Calderon and his ruling conservative National Action Party (PAN) have stopped short of calling for legalization or decriminalization.The Mexican Congress held a lively three-day debate on decriminalizing marijuana.

Mexico Begins Debate on Cannabis Legalization

jeremiah — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 19:18:49 -0700

Mexican lawmakers and experts on Monday began a first debate on the legalization of marijuana as part of a possible strategy to tackle the country's powerful drug cartels. (Susana Vera, Reuters)Mexican lawmakers and experts on Monday began a first debate on the legalization of marijuana as part of a possible strategy to tackle the country's powerful drug cartels.

Obama Compares Mexican President and Drug War To Eliot Ness and Alcohol Prohibition

jeremiah — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 04:05:49 -0700

CANNABIS CULTURE - President Barack Obama appeared on the CBS's Face The Nation and discussed the growing drug-related violence in Mexico with host Bob Schieffer. In a comment that is sure to bewilder and confuse those on both sides of the drug war debate, Obama compared Mexican President Felipe Calderón to alcohol prohibition-era gangbuster Eliot Ness.

Agents Charged With Favoring Drug Cartel

jeremiah — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:11:41 -0800

MEXICO CITY - President Felipe Calderon's war on drug trafficking has led to his own doorstep, with the arrest of a dozen high-ranking officials with alleged ties to Mexico's most powerful drug gang, the Sinaloa Cartel.

The U.S. praises Calderon for rooting out corruption at the top. But critics say the arrests reveal nothing more than a timeworn government tactic of protecting one cartel and cracking down on others.

Mexican Collapse? Drug Wars Worry Some Americans

jeremiah — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 09:47:39 -0800

A Mexican soldier stands on guard at a house where marijuana plants being grown were found in Tijuana, Mexico, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2009. Special forces soldiers found some 170 marijuana plants, in a room used as a greenhouse, and detained a suspect. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)MEXICO CITY – Indiscriminate kidnappings. Nearly daily beheadings. Gangs that mock and kill government agents. This isn't Iraq or Pakistan. It's Mexico, which the U.S.