**Primary Article: Mexican State Falls into Hands of Organized Crime, Claims Felipe Calderón**
Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, former President of Mexico from December 1, 2006, to November 30, 2012, asserted on September 25, 2024, that drug trafficking has seized control of the Mexican state and that this phenomenon has dangerously expanded. Speaking at the “Campus FAES 2024” event organized by the FAES Foundation in Madrid, Spain, the ex-mandate denounced the institutional crisis and drug cartel control under the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Calderón highlighted the collapse of institutions in Latin America, with Mexico’s situation being the most alarming. He argued that Mexico had ceased to be a functional democracy, pointing out that two years earlier, he had warned that the country was “on the brink” and now maintained that “this democracy has fallen.”
The former President accused the current Mexican Federal Government of misusing public resources to favor Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, ex-presidential candidate of the coalition “Let’s Keep Making History,” composed of Morena, the Labor Party (PT), and the Green Ecologist Party of Mexico (PVEM), stating that over 2.5 billion euros were unlawfully spent to buy the election practically.
Calderón also alleged that Morena dismantled the last remaining independent branch of power, the Judiciary, and manipulated institutions to secure an overwhelming legislative majority. “54 percent of the votes miraculously gave them 74 percent of the representatives in a gross manipulation of the law,” he criticized, referring to the distribution of the qualified majority in the Congress of the Union.
Calderón described the current political climate in Mexico as a regression to the Institutional Revolutionary Party’s (PRI) culture but even more dangerous. He warned that organized crime controlled an ever-growing portion of Mexico, now exceeding half of the territory. This crisis not only afflicts Mexico but also represents a rising problem across Latin America.
Additionally, Calderón criticized López Obrador’s security strategy as inefficient and permissive. “Today, Mexico has turned into a river of blood,” he said, alluding to skyrocketing violence rates.
The ex-president denounced the return of authoritarian PRI practices under the guise of Morena, claiming that many key figures in the current government, like Manuel Bartlett Díaz, had PRI origins. He concluded by cautioning against the political regression and the capture of the state by organized crime as the greatest dangers facing Mexico.
**Secondary Article: Mexican Supreme Court Ties Vote to Grant Amparo to Aburto, Confessed Assassin of Colosio**
On the same date, the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) reached a tie vote on whether to grant an amparo to Mario Aburto Martínez, the confessed assassin of presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio. This potential legal relief has sparked controversy and reignited debates over the 1994 murder, given that Aburto’s lawyers argue he was tortured into confessing.
In recent developments, a declassified U.S. document has implicated Manuel Bartlett Díaz, a high-profile political figure, in the assassination of DEA agent “Kiki” Camarena. These revelations tie into broader discussions about the infiltration of organized crime into the highest levels of government and enforcement agencies in Mexico.
This critical juncture illustrates the deep-rooted challenges within Mexico’s justice system and highlights ongoing efforts to address historical injustices amid contemporary political turbulence.