In a
report on the latest massacre of federal police in Mexico, the
Los Angeles Times points out that the Mexican people seem to be losing faith in President Calderon's escalated campaign against the cartels:
"We cannot, we should not, we will not take one step backward in this matter," Calderon said Tuesday.
Mexicans seem skeptical. In a new poll, more than half of respondents said they believe the government is losing the war. Only 28% said it is winning, according to the survey, published Tuesday in the daily Milenio newspaper.
That frustration is becoming a big problem for Calderon:
MEXICO CITY - President Felipe Calderon suffered a setback in midterm elections yesterday when the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party unseated his party as the largest force in Mexicoâs fractured Congress in a vote that turned on the global economic crisis and the governmentâs crackdown on drug traffickers. [Boston Globe]
And it's only going to get worse. Calderon's crackdown has produced the opposite of its intended effect, which is exactly what one should always expect from aggressive tactics in the war on drugs. Violence and corruption will only continue to escalate and Calderon will inevitably be fighting for re-election amidst daily episodes of horrific street violence brought about by his own policies.
Calderon's predecessor Vicente Fox is now
advocating discussion about legalizing drugs and it's probably just a matter of time before that debate becomes the central question in Mexican politics.