Three Mexico political parties vow to block Calderon

[Robbien]

El Financiero en línea

Mexico, September 14.- Leaders of three Mexican political parties formed a coalition to oppose President-elect Felipe Calderon in congress, a move that will make it tougher for him to push through legislation allowing private investment in the oil industry.

The Party of the Democratic Revolution, which is led by second-place presidential finisher Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, united with the Workers Party and the Convergence Party to counter what they call a "right-wing movement" led by Calderon. The three-party front holds 157 seats in the 500-seat lower house and 34 seats in the 128-member Senate.

"We're never going to negotiate with Calderon because he's an illegitimate president, said Jesus Ortega, Lopez Obrador's campaign manager and former senator. "We're going to be in the streets as well as in Congress".

Such a coalition could thwart Calderon's promise to amend Mexico's constitution to allow private investment in the oil industry -- a key to bolstering growth in Latin America's second-biggest economy -- and to change legislation to allow oral testimony from crime victims. Amendments require a two- thirds majority in congress in Mexico.

Calderon, 44, has vowed to shift his agenda to placate supporters of Lopez Obrador before pushing for private investment in the oil industry.

http://www.elfinanciero.com.mx/ElFinanciero/Portal/cfpages/contentmgr.cfm?docId=20300&docTipo=1&orderby=docid&sortby=ASC

this story is also in Bloomberg, but Bloomberg's article of course leaves out all the reasons why the nasty old leftist are against Caulderon.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=az0697SmdNHc&refer=home

[stepnw1f]

1. Excellente! (nt)

[Robbien]

2. and in related news "Venezuela Yet to Recognize Mexico’s President-elect"

Caracas, Venezuela, September 14, 2006 -Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced on Tuesday night that “Venezuela has not recognized the new Mexican government” and stated that they are “evaluating” the situation. Chavez made the statements at a Caracas event for the fifth anniversary of the Venezuelan Women’s Bank.

“I don’t want to interfere out of respect for the internal matters of the country, but of course we are worried about the situation in which the Mexican people are living and the circumstances under which the electoral process came about,” said Chavez.

Chavez announced his fears for “the strong accusations and evidence of strange things that may have taken place during the electoral process.”

“The foreign minister Nicolas Maduro said it first, and I second him. We are evaluating. Venezuela has not recognized the new Mexican government,” he said.

http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news.php?newsno=2074

[John Q. Citizen]

3. Even the top story is slanted

"a key to bolstering growth in Latin America's second-biggest economy" according to Neocon big oil sources.

Bold text is my comment.

[Freddie Stubbs]

4. But what will the PRI do?

:shrug:

[Adelante]

5. Support the PAN

That's what.

[ConservativeDemocrat]

7. Everyone else has said the election was fair...

That includes the PRI, the European Election observers, and just about every national government other than Chavez's.

Oh, and the two other parties joining the PRD are kind of like Bush's "Coalition of the Willing", except even less consequential. The Convergence Party was already backing Obrador in the "Alliance for the Good of All", and the Workers Party (Trotskist Communists) has so few members, it failed to secure recognition.

Meanwhile, Obrador's popularity has plummeted since he started his blockades in Mexico, D.F. I have a few friends who voted for the PRD, that are now glad they were on the losing side.

This is going to all blow over. The vote tallies were all hand-counted and signed off by PRD party members in 90.8% of the districts. The 9.2% of the precincts in which there was a dispute (between the PRD, PRI, and PAN vote counters) have all been recounted, and the results haven't changed. So no, sorry. This isn't Florida 2000 all over again.

- C.D. Proud Member of the Reality Based Community

[tkmorris]

8. Your facts are totally wrong

But I am too tired to break it all dowm properly. Seriously, just about every single thing in your post was exactly wrong.

[hogwyld]

13. You are delusionally wrong!

There was massive vote manipulation, and only a 100% hand recount will suffice in preventing another Mexican revolution. Your boy Calderon will never have the legitimacy needed to govern without putting the fraud allegations to rest. I hope for the good of his country, he would step down, but his maniacal desire for power is overriding all. His legacy/infamy will be as the president that destroyed a country.

[Robbien]

17. Proud Member of Reality Based Community based on Faux News

Tony Snow must be one of your idols.

[ConservativeDemocrat]

19. Gee, three replies, no countering facts. Wonder why?

Here's the truth about the Mexican elections.
1) They were held with paper ballots.
2) Election observers from all major parties were invited to all stations.
3) The PRD's own observers signed off on the vote counts. As did the PRI and
other observers, all of which were in competition.
4) Where there wasn't a PRD representative (largely in the overwhelmingly PAN north),
the PRD issued blanket "challenges". This forced an immediate recount. It also
delayed reporting of PAN precincts, which is why Calderon's victory came from behind.
5) The challenged precincts were all re-re-counted by order of the IFE. There was
no sign of fraud detected.
6) Jose Ignacio Salafranca, the head of the European Union observers, said Monday that the results of Mexican elections were so far reliable and they can ruled out the possibility of fraud in the elections.
7) Because they really didn't have any good leg to stand on regarding election fraud,
most of Obradors' "appeal" before the IFE had to do with whether the political ads
the PAN showed on TV were "fair" to him. (Mexico has much stronger truth in political advertising requirements than the U.S.). The upshot? The IFE decided that both sides had significantly misrepresented each other, and so decided the results were offsetting.

I didn't have a vote in the Mexican election, but my wife did. She didn't like either of the major candidates (Obrador for his Chavez-like anti-democratic populism, Calderon for his toxic Roman Catholic social conservatism). Her family split, like Mexico did, between the two candidates, and she ended up not voting at all. But at this point, we're both glad Calderon won. Better a bigot than a leftist who apparently doesn't believe in the rule of law.

- C.D. Proud Member of the Reality Based Community

[Robbien]

21. All your so called facts are just talking points of the RW echo chamber.

Not facts, just lingoistic words spit out by the Bushbots and MoonieTimes.

Bush didn't waste all our tax-payer funded propaganda money since it is obvious he has made a believer out of you.

[Mudoria]

22. Thanks for the .

info. I wasn't aware that the vote was deemed fair by very reliable sources.

[zonkers]

20. Obrador's biggest problem is the fact that the election, though close,

and far from perfect, was not the wholesale theft he claims it was. Significant gains made by others in his party will now being marginalized by his behavior. It is foolish to think sweeping social and economic reform can be achieved instantly.

We have had two presidential election thefts in this country. Have the same folks cheerleading for revolution in Mexico from the comfort of their own living room "revolted" and put their lives on the line like they want Mexican cititzens to do? No. I call bullshit.

[Jcrowley]

6. Supremo

basta!

[0007]

9. Holy Moley!

Neocons ain't gonna like this move..

[jarnocan]

10. Huge amounts of OIL discovered off the coast of Mexico

and BU**SH**Inc. helps the most likely to be a bu**sh brown noser fraudulently win.
Same O'Bu**sh** different country.

[BlueStateModerate]

11. Hmm...

"The three-party front holds 157 seats in the 500-seat lower house and 34 seats in the 128-member Senate."

It doesn't sound like these folks will be able to accomplish very much

[hogwyld]

15. So, just give up????

What about the filibuster? Majority mob rules? NO! Between the opposition lawmakers, and the millions upon millions of AMLO supporters, they can absolutely shut down the government, disrupt their oil and tourism industries, block roads. Without one single bit of violence, they could bring the entire "elite" establishment to it's knees. They will beg to give or share power to the people. Never give up! Never surrender!

[Jack Rabbit]

12. Now this is how you deal with a stolen election

like this . . .



Manila, 1986
Photo: Ukrainian Embassy, Belgium

or this . . .



Mexico City, 2006
Photo: CBS News

or this . . .



Kiev, 2005
Photo: Ukrainian Embassy, Belgium

but not like this:



Washington, 2000
Photo: Science Fair Project

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

18. But not like this:

Tsk, tsk.

[sweetheart]

14. El dios bendice el partido de la revolución democrática nt

[AX10]

16. Muy Supremo!

Calderon was not democratically elected. He has no legitimacy.

[goforit]

23. Bueno suerte Obrador!

[Adelante]

24. Anyone for Mexican public opinion?

85% oppose the plantones in the Reforma and Zócalo. 77% support the TRIFE. 63% trust the IFE. 63% think Calderón is the better choice for president. 76% disapprove of AMLO's refusal to accept the Tribunal's decision. 59% have a negative opinion of AMLO. 20% agree with him. 68% dislike AMLO's behavior. 60% oppose the National Democratic Convention in the Zócalo. 86% disapprove of the demonstration by the PRD deputies. 76% have a negative image of the PRD.

Here is the poll by Ulises Beltrán y Asociados:

http://www.bgc.com.mx/

There are others, one of which gives Calderón a 54% win if the election were held today with AMLO somewhere in the 20s.

This is what Mexico thinks. Outside Mexico City, unless somebody asks them a question, believe me, NOBODY is thinking about any of this. They just want it to stop.

[IndianaGreen]

25. Calderon is as illegitimate as Bush

The people of Mexico are showing us what we should have done in 2000 after the judicial coup, and in 2004 after the Ohio electoral fiasco. They also show why the DLC's advice to appease the Republicans sucked so bad.

In the words of Mao Zedong, "we must oppose whatever the enemy proposes, and support whatever the enemy opposes."

Down with the Bush dictatorship!