In Mexico's New Politics, Wealth May Be a Liability

[Judi Lynn]

In Mexico's New Politics, Wealth May Be a Liability
By Sam Enriquez, Times Staff Writer
March 2, 2006


MEXICO CITY — Mexico's leading presidential candidate, the leftist former mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, lives in a 1,500-square-foot apartment in the heart of the city's university village.

Conservative free-market candidate Felipe Calderon lives in a 2,900-square-foot home around the corner from Pizza Hut, Burger King and Blockbuster, neon-lighted landmarks in Mexico's new global economy.

Roberto Madrazo, candidate of the once-dominant Institutional Revolutionary Party, has a 14,000-square-foot home on a 3.6-acre estate overlooking the capital.

All three men have spent their lives in public service, moving between elected office and political party jobs. The annual income for each man barely cracks six figures.

But according to his financial statements, Madrazo has five houses, three 2,800-square-foot condominiums, a Porsche, a BMW, a Ford Expedition, $500,000 in gold and cash and has lent people $250,000 more.
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http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fg-money2mar02,1,2588493.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage



Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Felipe Calderon, Roberto Madrazo

[fasttense]

1. Behind every great fortune is a great crime. n/t

[400Years]

2. quite often that statement is all too true