International
Mexico president to ‘show muscle’ at big political rally
| By AFP | Jennifer Gonzalez Covarrubias |
Supporters of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador are expected to flood the streets of Mexico City on Sunday in a major show of political strength by the left-wing populist.
The rally comes as presidential hopefuls, including Lopez Obrador’s allies, warm up for the race to replace him in 2024.
Two weeks after tens of thousands joined an opposition protest against his proposed electoral reform, Lopez Obrador plans to lead a pro-government march through the heart of the capital.
The aim is to celebrate the government’s “transformation of Mexico” four years into his six-year term, Lopez Obrador told reporters.
“I invite all the people, all those who can attend,” including government ministers and lawmakers, he said.
It will be the first such march led by a Mexican president in at least four decades, and possibly the biggest pro-government rally since Lopez Obrador took office in 2018, according to experts.
Lopez Obrador wants to “show muscle,” Fernando Dworak, a political analyst at the Mexican Autonomous Institute of Technology, said.
“It was a serious mistake by the opposition to believe that the president can be beaten on the streets,” he told AFP, referring to the November 13 anti-government protest.
‘Oiled machinery’
Lopez Obrador enjoys an approval rating of nearly 60 percent, and few doubt his ability to draw a huge crowd on Sunday, when he plans to give a speech outlining his achievements in office.
Mexican presidents are barred from serving more than one term, and Lopez Obrador has ruled out trying to change the constitution to stay in office.
Even so, he is keen to see his Morena party hold onto power after he stands aside.
Two of Lopez Obrador’s close allies and potential successors, Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum and Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, are expected to march alongside him.
Lopez Obrador knows “that in order for him to win elections he needs oiled machinery that works all the time,” said Gustavo Lopez, a political scientist at Tecnologico de Monterrey, a Mexican university.
Opposition parties accuse Lopez Obrador of being an “authoritarian” populist who is “militarizing” the country by giving a greater role to the armed forces in both security and infrastructure projects.
His efforts to revamp the independent National Electoral Institute (INE) have proven particularly controversial.
Lopez Obrador alleges that the INE endorsed fraud when he ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in 2006 and 2012, before winning in 2018.
He wants the organization to be replaced by a new body with members chosen by voters instead of lawmakers and with a smaller budget.
Critics see the plan as an attack on one of Mexico’s most important democratic institutions.
The reform would require support from at least two-thirds of lawmakers in Congress, and Lopez Obrador’s political opponents have vowed to oppose the changes.
International
Trump says Jimmy Kimmel show suspension due to poor ratings, not politics
U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed any political motive behind ABC’s suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show, stating that the decision is due to “poor viewership ratings” and not a reaction to Kimmel’s comments about the death of Charlie Kirk.
The suspension of Kimmel’s program was announced yesterday and coincided with the comedian’s remarks regarding Kirk’s death and the reactions of prominent Republican figures in the United States.
However, Trump, on his social media platform Truth Social, emphasized that the cancellations of both Kimmel’s and Stephen Colbert’s shows are due to low ratings and limited audience reach.
“Good news for the United States: Jimmy Kimmel’s show, with terrible ratings, has been canceled! Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to make this decision. Kimmel has no talent, and his ratings are even worse than Colbert’s, if that’s possible. Now only Jimmy and Seth remain, two failures, on the fake news network NBC. Their ratings are also catastrophic,” Trump wrote.
ABC announced on Wednesday that Jimmy Kimmel’s variety show will be taken off the air “indefinitely,” following threats of legal action from the U.S. government after the host made comments on the political repercussions of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
International
Padilla and Durbin seek oversight as deportation of Guatemalan minors sparks legal concerns
Democratic Senators Alex Padilla and Dick Durbin have demanded explanations from President Donald Trump’s administration regarding its plans to deport dozens of unaccompanied Guatemalan children in U.S. custody, without allowing them the chance to defend their immigration cases.
The lawmakers said on Wednesday that they have requested oversight hearings in the Senate to compel the White House to respond about the planned deportations, which were initially scheduled for August 31 but remain on hold due to a court order.
According to lawyers representing ten children aged 10 to 16 who filed a lawsuit, the administration violated due process by ignoring ongoing immigration cases and disregarding the special protections granted to minors who crossed the border from Mexico alone.
Under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA), unaccompanied immigrant children in the U.S. generally have the opportunity to appear before an immigration judge before being deported.
Padilla and Durbin’s demand comes after a report by the Government Accountability Project (GAP) alleged that the Trump administration misrepresented the safety of unaccompanied Guatemalan children under its care in order to justify removing them from the country.
The report revealed that at least 30 of the 327 Guatemalan children the administration attempted to deport “show signs” of having been victims of abuse, including death threats, gang violence, human trafficking, or expressed fear of returning to Guatemala.
However, Angie Salazar, director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), which maintains custody of the children, testified in court under penalty of perjury that these children showed no evidence of abuse or neglect by a parent or guardian.
International
Trump criticizes Putin, calls Ukraine war “one of the deadliest conflicts”
U.S. President Donald Trump expressed his disappointment on Thursday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating that the war in Ukraine would have been easier to resolve due to the personal relationship they share, but has instead become one of the deadliest conflicts.
During a press conference following a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the official Chequers residence, Trump said he has successfully negotiated the end of seven armed conflicts, though he admitted that the war in Ukraine has been particularly challenging.
The president noted that he initially thought the Russia-Ukraine conflict would be “one of the easiest” to negotiate. However, he cautioned that “you never know in war” and often things “happen in the opposite way than expected.”
When asked why he was disappointed, Trump stated that Putin “is killing a lot of people,” adding that “Russian soldiers are being killed in greater numbers than Ukrainians.”
Prime Minister Starmer emphasized that the United Kingdom continues to work alongside the United States to halt “the killing in Ukraine.” He noted that in recent days, Putin has revealed his true intentions by ordering the most devastating attack since the invasion began in 2022, resulting in more civilian casualties and new violations of NATO airspace.
“President Trump and I have discussed how we can strengthen our defenses, maintain support for Ukraine, and increase international pressure to force Putin to accept a lasting peace agreement,” Starmer said.
The joint statement came on the second day of President Trump’s state visit to the United Kingdom, from the Chequers country residence in Aylesbury, about 60 kilometers from London.
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