Hugo Chávez and Néstor Kirchner have inspired an interesting dimension to the presidential campaigns--and, indeed, politics in general--in Mexico. Andres Manuel López Obrador (AMLO to most Mexican newspapers) responded yesterday to comments by the presidents of Venezuela and Argentina, both of whom criticized current Mexican President Vicente Fox after the recent summit in Argentina. Chávez called him a "cachorro del imperio norteamericano" (or "Yankee Lap Dog") and Kirchner accused him of pushing U.S.-backed free-trade agreements (or, kind of, of being a "Yankee Lap Dog").
AMLO, whose party, the PRD, is the left-of-center group, stepped up to the plate in a bit of savvy politicking to defend his president, a member of PAN, the right-of-center party. Chávez has effectively provided a kind of out-of-line leftism against which AMLO can define himself; this is useful, as the latter has on several occasions already been likened to Chávez--an opinion he vociferously rejects. In fact, AMLO is working hard to portray himself as a "moderate leftist" at the moment.
Even as he "defended" Fox nationalistically, AMLO chided him for trying to be the hero of the negotiations, suggesting that Fox's energy is best spent elsewhere. In all, it's a compelling example of how AMLO has been working to shape his image nationally and internationally. I think it makes him look pretty good, frankly. Here's a bit from the linked story:
López Obrador comentó lo anterior a raíz de que el presidente venezolano, Hugo Chávez, llamara a Fox “cachorro del imperio norteamericano”, poco después de que el mandatario argentino, Nestor Kirchner, pidiera también a su colega mexicano que se “ocupara de los asuntos de México”.
En esta tonalidad reaccionaron ambos jefes de Estado tras de que Fox acusara al segundo de ellos de estar más atento en la opinión pública de su país, durante la reciente Cumbre de las Américas, celebrada en Mar de Plata, que en tratar de concretar finalmente el controversial Acuerdo de Libre Comercio de las Américas (ALCA).
Al respecto, López Obrador reconoció ayer que el presidente de México “no está actuando de manera responsable, creo que está actuando mal con tanto protagonismo en la política exterior”, y planteó que mejor sería que “moderara su protagonismo”.
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