López Obrador Blasts ‘The New York Times’ For Investigating Alleged Drug Financing In His 2018 Campaign

Andre Manuel Lopez Obrador declared that the American newspaper The New York Times His children and close associates are investigating drug trafficking money he allegedly received for his 2018 presidential campaign, in which he was elected president of Mexico. Although the report was not published, the President read a questionnaire sent to the media to collect his version. López Obrador denied the allegations, which stemmed from an investigation by the DEA (US Anti-Narcotics Agency), and demanded that Joe Biden’s administration clarify the matter. “By what right do they investigate a lawfully constituted government?” The President questioned, “Are they the government of the world?” . The newspaper published the note two hours after the conference the morning This Thursday.

The president explained that the American newspaper sent a questionnaire to collect his version, an essential requirement before the publication of any report, especially if the allegations of investigative journalism are serious. However, it is not common for the questionnaire to be made public before the notes are published and it is usually a tool used by those in question to protect themselves from disclosure or to undermine the credibility of the investigation. López Obrador alleged that the tone of the letter was “threatening and arrogant” and called the media a “filthy tract”.

“It’s a shame, no doubt, that kind of journalism “It is clearly reducing,” said the president, who also disclosed the personal data of the journalist who contacted him. The National Institute of Transparency, Access to Information and Protection of Personal Data (INAI) launched an ex officio inquiry into the disclosure of the correspondent’s telephone number. The New York Times He criticized López Obrador’s reaction to his request for comment. “This is a worrying and unacceptable tactic by a world leader at a time when threats to journalists are on the rise,” said the newspaper, which confirmed it supports the work and journalists in question. “Those who go after information. Wherever it is found.

The questionnaire states that the DEA investigated López Obrador’s children and members of his circle of associates for receiving millions of dollars from members of organized crime. In recent weeks, a report published by journalist Tim Golden had already come to light on the portal ProPublica López Obrador first sought the presidency about another DEA investigation that followed the trail of drug financing in the 2006 campaign, but it was closed for lack of elements to prosecute the crime. The president also discredited that investigation and said the allegations were false.

This second investigation is based on the testimony of informants, who said that “close allies of the president met with drug cartels.” “In the end, the investigation was closed after US authorities recognized that it could trigger a diplomatic conflict with Mexico. In large part, this decision was made after the reaction of the Mexican government when the United States arrested General Salvador Cienfuegos in 2020,” of the questionnaire. The first question reads. “Did the president or members of his government know about the recent investigation?” asks the newspaper.

The report, titled “United States Investigates Allegations of Ties Between Mexico’s President and Cartels,” noted that Washington had investigated possible ties between López Obrador and drug trafficking for years, though no investigation had been opened. formal reason. “They concluded that the US government had little interest in pursuing charges against the leader of one of the US’s key allies, said three people who know the case but were not authorized to speak publicly,” it read in the release.

“In other words, they feared us because they respected Mexico,” the president said. “All this is completely wrong,” he added. López Obrador said he was not aware of the investigation and reiterated that the information was “false”. “You’re fake, of course New York Times And who sent him to report, – he replied when the outlet asked him his opinion in a questionnaire. Since the ProPublica investigation, López Obrador has maintained that the DEA leaked information to undermine his government and influence the June 2 election, pointing out that there is no evidence showing links to drug trafficking with his government.

One delivery of the money is believed to have been made by Ismail May Zambada, founder of the Sinaloa Cartel and historical leader along with Joaquin L Chapo Guzmán, López Obrador confidant. The United States last week indicted El Mayo on two counts of fentanyl trafficking. “An informant said one of the president’s closest officials met with Ismail Zambada,” the letter reads. López Obrador denied that the new charges against El Mayo were a ploy to pressure his government. “Although recent efforts by US officials have identified possible links between cartels and associates of López Obrador, they have not found direct links between the president himself and criminal organizations,” the US newspaper clarified.

The second question refers to the testimony of another informant showing that one of the founders of the Zetas paid four million dollars to two associates of López Obrador, one an official aide and the other a consultant, in hopes of getting out of prison. .†€. In another quote, a third witness claims there are videos of the president’s children getting money from drug trafficking. Apart from the informants’ statements, US officials investigated transfers made by “people believed to be working for the cartel” to López Obrador’s intermediaries, the report said. Media details indicate that at least one transfer was made during the president’s visit to Sinaloa in March 2020, during which he “met with his mother. L Chapo Guzmán “They are professional slanderers, world famous,” returned the president.

In the report, sources were consulted The New York Times He attributed the lack of progress in the investigation to the fact that the White House sought to maintain diplomatic ties with Mexico, a key ally in combating the immigration crisis and curbing fentanyl trafficking. “The Biden administration has treated López Obrador with extreme care, refraining from publicly criticizing him so that senior officials could be sent to Mexico City to meet with him, and privately pushing for continued efforts to address migration.” Original version, in English. The media asserts that the case opened against General Salvador Cienfuegos, Secretary of Defense in Enrique Peña Nieto’s government, was also influential. Cienfuegos was arrested in Los Angeles in October 2020, extradited to Mexico a month later, and acquitted in January 2021 amid strong diplomatic friction between the two countries.

At his morning conference, López Obrador denied that bilateral relations with Washington had been affected by the investigation, though he said “time will tell” if trust between the two governments has eroded. “Your answer is, we will await the report,” he said. He also sent a message to US authorities: “The US government must now report.” In the final minutes of his morning conference this Thursday, the president satirically commented on the accusations against his inner circle with a Chico Che song: “Wow, how scary, look how I’m shaking.”

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