Some Wary of Mexican Candidate's Populism

[Eugene]

Some Wary of Mexican Candidate's Populism

Monday July 25, 2005 6:46 PM

AP Photo JLM101

By MARK STEVENSON

Associated Press Writer

MEXICO CITY (AP) - The man favored to win the 2006 presidential
election resigns this week as Mexico City mayor to formally launch a
populist campaign that some fear could be a step back for the
country's developing democracy.

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's main pledge - to expand nationwide the
public works projects and cash payments to the elderly he began in
Mexico City - is being criticized as a return to Mexico's old-style,
vote-buying politics by some opponents, even as others scramble to
imitate the programs.

<snip>

The mayor is a skillful politician, but he can seem a bit messianic:
intolerant of criticism, leery of openness in his governance, uneasy
with sharing power and able to mobilize thousands of supporters to
influence public opinion.

"He's not your traditional politician. He feels he has been sent,
chosen, invoked, with a prophetic message," said political scientist
Oscar Aguilar Ascencio. "He doesn't like to debate that, and feels
that mistakes are impossible."

Full article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5165641,00.html

[damntexdem]

1. Promising to help the people is vote=buying ...

secretly promising to help the wealthy and corporations is business as usual.

Hurrah for Obrador! Hurrah for the PRD!

[bemildred]

2. Yeah, and "some" think it's great. nt