Newsmax
By Jim Myers and Kathleen Walter
Former Mexican President Vicente Fox says his nation is at "war" with drug cartels, and he offered sharp criticism of the Obama administration for failing to assist its beleaguered neighbor.
In an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV on Tuesday, Fox said President Barack Obama's administration has failed to grapple with the deteriorating situation in Mexico.
“Obama is thoroughly mixed up with all these things he’s got," Fox said, adding: "He’s got to solve Libya. He’s got to solve Afghanistan. He’s everywhere. And this nation, I don’t know why it’s not showing the leadership and capacity to attend different issues at the same time.”
Story continues below video.
Asked if Mexico was entangled in a civil war involving the drug cartels, Fox responded: “We’re undergoing a war, no doubt — 35,000, maybe 40,000 people killed, either members of the cartels or members of the police force or members of the army. So yes, we’re undergoing a war, no doubt.
“Everybody’s trying to deny that we’re going through a war, but that’s what it is. That’s why we have to move to a new paradigm."
Recently, Fox has called for legalizing and decriminalizing drugs in the United States to throttle the demand for narcotics, which he argues is the root cause of his country's civil unrest.
"The United States has to think very profoundly how it is going to solve this problem of excess in the consumption of drugs, excess in building a market that is very profitable to the criminals," he said.
He continued: “I think the best move is to take away the business from criminals and put it in the hands of businessmen and producers, farmers, distributors.”
He compared the situation with illegal drugs to Prohibition in the United States, which enriched mobsters who provided alcohol just as the drug trade is now enriching the cartels.
“We are never going to eradicate drugs,” he added. “They will always be there. It is a free choice” to consume them.
Fox, who served as president from 2000 to 2006, also took aim at his successor, Felipe Calderon, who has enlisted the army in the fight against drug traffickers in Mexico.
“And this decision that President Calderon took, to bring in the army in trying to control drug trafficking cartels, I don’t think is the right measure. It has created violations to human rights and additional problems," he said.
“I think there are much better alternatives than that one. The army should go back to their assigned duties, and police should take the responsibility of fighting the cartels."
Fox was also critical of both the wall at the U.S.-Mexico border and the Arizona law aimed at curtailing illegal immigration.
He stressed that he is “absolutely not” calling for an open border, but rather for the “wisdom and leadership" of this nation.
“There is [an immigration reform] bill in Congress, prepared by Senator Kennedy, Senator McCain, a bipartisan initiative, and it’s been sitting there for years, seven years, eight years. I discussed with President Bush a strategy for an integrated immigration reform. And it’s been sitting there without any solution.
“So if Arizona sees the federal government isn’t assuming its responsibilities, it creates local laws. But migration and keeping security on the borders is not a local or state issue, it’s a federal issue."
As for Obama's role in immigration reform, Fox said he “has not attended to it. It was a campaign promise he’s not even trying to do it.”
Fox is visiting the United States as part of an effort to promote the construction of the Vicente Fox Center of Studies, Library and Museum near his ranch in Guanajuato, Mexico, which he says is the world’s first presidential library outside the United States.
TRUE!!! TIENES RAZON PRESIDENTE!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure if Mexico said send in your Marines and DEA, we would be doing that. Unfortunately the proud Mexicans have stifled our ability to "reall" get involved and even if we did, I'm not so sure we can stop it.
ReplyDeleteAs for Obama being a failure...I agree whole heartedly. We have NO business being in Libya and he pussy foots around everything. Who are these so called rebels we are helping?? Even our government hasn't a damn clue. I believe the US is slowly getting more involved in Mexico, but probably covertly. Even if involved, the corruption that goes up to high levels would prevent us from our objectives which is to take Mexico's natural resources and senoritas :-)....Sorry I just mixed my objectives in :-)
Lol so much BS comes out this guys mouth. Easier said then done President Bob-Bear. Legalizing drugs in the US is retarded. Legalizing weed ok but legalizing the rest is 2 dumb for Obama to even think to do. So you want the US to fix YOUR problem with cartels. Heres a thought, solve your own problems and dont depend on other MEXICO!
ReplyDeleteI do not see how Legalizing would provide much of any kind of change. As long as drug cartels control the suppliers, they would retain control of the market. Would there still be violence to control the market? Who knows. The illegal drug market is far more complex and global than the U.S alcohol market was during prohibition. There is no guarantee that legalization would result in an immediate price drop.
ReplyDeleteLike all of Mexico's presidents he blames the US for everything. It takes the spotlight off of the rampant corruption and impunity that is and always has been Mexico and It's a very popular sentiment in Mexico. Goes over well with the paisanos. Fox would rather not talk about what he did not do and he certainly does not want to reveal any of his and his wife's own personal benefit from corruption. As 3:20 says - Fox is full of shit.
ReplyDeleteNo matter how much I hate saying this but...LEGALIZE!
ReplyDeleteBut we all know that this will never happen. That is a just a dream.
So meanwhile, both countries should take care of their own problems. Mexico needs to grow up and stop relying on the U.S. for everything and take control of their own country and stop blaming the U.S. for their own problems.
Its like a rich man giving a homeless person $100.00, then the homeless person takes the money, spits on the rich man's face and then spends all the money on alcohol and then blames the rich for his own problems.
I think that the U.S. is just tired of dealing with Mexico now. Not to mention, Mexico does'nt have much to offer the U.S. anymore. Their recources are depleted and their land is too dangerous for outsourcing.
Mexico is in deep shit.
How can he keep a straight face while saying all these idiotic suggestions? I was patiently waiting for a "punchline" and the mask to come off. I honestly thought this was skit from SNL. How old is this man? The word DELUSIONAL comes to mind...
ReplyDelete777
Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteI'm sure if Mexico said send in your Marines and DEA, we would be doing that. Unfortunately the proud Mexicans have stifled our ability to "reall" get involved and even if we did, I'm not so sure we can stop it.
What proud Mexicans These ones? http://www.blogdelnarco.com/2011/03/acribillan-brutalmente-teniente-coronel.html
http://www.diariodelnarco.com/2011/03/fotografias-de-la-ancianita-y-sus.html
We can get involved without sending an army. Just legalize the shit, consuming drugs is a choice, Fox said it. Americans won't be able to relate to this until it starts happening in our cities. Look, they just caught some guys trying to buy Stinger missiles and anti tank weapons !!!
Lets be fair some of what he says makes sense but then again on some key facts he is full of shit.
ReplyDeleteSaying that the US drug use is the reason for the MDCs is like saying Fox and all other Mx presidents were not corrupt. NOT SO. including his corrupt wife and her bogus charities...sorry I hate these people. good thing wifey got caught or she would be where Calderon is.
Back to the drug use. Well Mr. Foxy...US drug use was in decline across the board except MJ, until last year. Last year meth began on the rise :
DUE TO MDC ABILITY TO TRAFFIC CHEAP AND PLENTIFUL METH TO THE US.
SO Mr. Foxy if your country had a handle on its drug traffic our poor drug users would not have access to such a plentiful supply.
I say your country with tongue in cheek since you spend most your days at your ranch in Texas..
If we were to Legalise drugs, Police forces would have layoffs, Prosecutors, etc.
ReplyDeletethere is a whole industry of Doughnut chompers
dedicated to prohibition.
Why would Former President Vicente Fox say its better to pull out the troops and just live the police to fight the drug cartels?
ReplyDeleteMakes me wonder if he's part of the drug cartel himself.
And who does Vicente Fox think he is,dictating to the United States on what to do? He didn't do squat to prevent drug production, drug distribution, when he had the opportunity as president. As far as legalizing any kind of "recreational drugs" here in the United States, that would be insane. We would be giving the wrong message to young people,it is allright to comsume drugs as long as they are validated by the US government. Even though alcohol is a drug, it cannot be compared to cocaine, heroin and marihuana. Stay in Mejico Vicente Fox and help your own president!
ReplyDeleteYou remind me of a worm,a skinful of shit.
"We can get involved without sending an army. Just legalize the shit, consuming drugs is a choice, Fox said it. Americans won't be able to relate to this until it starts happening in our cities. Look, they just caught some guys trying to buy Stinger missiles and anti tank weapons !!!"
ReplyDeleteCocaine and heroin arent legal in england, france, germany, or in any country for that matter. Yet these countries dont have the same problems as mexico. That leads me to believe the problem isnt drugs, the problem is mexico. And as for the guys buying stinger missles....well it wasnt an american guy buying stingers to blow up other americans.
Legalizing is such an antiquated notion and the comparisons to prohibition is nothing more than liberal left wing ignorance. Do you really think the cartels will drop their arms, allow the Mex government dictate what they will do and everything goes back to normal...What a joke!!! Also, we would have to legalize Cocaine, heroin, child and other human trafficking, meth, and anything else you can think of by that theory and still the cartels would either be at war with each other or would resort to more kidnapping and extortion schemes. So funny!!! how people think and honestly I could not care less if it was legal or illegal, but I guarantee the majority of people buying drugs legally will be paying a lot more money and are probably the people who really can't afford it anyway. Crime will go through the roof especially in the ghetto so everyone can get their FIX.
ReplyDeleteThey blame us for the guns and violence...take personal responsibility....The guns are coming from the US? How come we are not running around with AK-47s extorting local businesses, kidnapping for randsome and causing huge crime waves terrorizing our citizens. It's about time Mexico takes responsibility for lack of jobs, lack of order, corruption, "blind eyes and deaf ears"...Yeah our consumption contributes to some degree, but not to the extent our politicians would lead us to believe.
Buela said...
ReplyDeleteLets be fair some of what he says makes sense but then again on some key facts he is full of shit.
Saying that the US drug use is the reason for the MDCs is like saying Fox and all other Mx presidents were not corrupt. NOT SO.>>
Sorry Buela but Mr. Fox's corruption is NOT the issue. According to the article, Mr. Fox is pointing out the lack of common sense in our drug policy. This is an issue of SUPPLY and DEMAND. The drug lords are in the business of supplying a commodity that is in high demand worldwide, but more so in the US. This problem is similar to the liquor ban of the 40's and we know from that experience that banning substances does not make the problem go away. On the contrary, the Capone wars were the result of the ban. Capone and the rest of that bunch became obscenely wealthy as a result, exactly the same reason for the Chapos, Beltranes and the rest of those thugs warring in Mexico. The reason is simple, you can make enormous fortunes as long as you're willing to risk your life and the lives of others become meaningless. The end (riches) justifies the means( carnage). If both the US and Mexico had a policy of regulation and taxation of these commodities, there would no incentive for the the drug lords to produce it because they would not be able to recoup their costs. The revenue raised from the taxation of these products could then be used to fund early interdiction, treatment and education so that morons like the sicarios can learn a trade that doesn't involve murdering others for a meager 300 pesos a week. This issue is too serious to trivialize it by blaming it only on the corruption of the Mexican governement. Yes, we all know that there is corruption in their government, but look at our own government, allowing thousands of weapons into Mexico to conduct an experiment of sorts on the Mexican people . Just look at the pics on the links above, these are regular people too and they are getting killed because our government demands that Mexico stop a problem, that in all honesty is ours, and then looks the other way by letting those guns go through. This only became a huge scandal after they killed the ICE agent and even after that, the HMS chief Janet Napolitano denied knowing anything about this problem even though BATF reports to her. How is that possible ? On the other hand, I doubt it that many of the people against legalization would become hard core users if drugs were to become legal.
No Money for drug users in the U S, but Democrats must support low class people on govt welfare, they DEmocrats will never offend their voter base,so it won't happen. Drug test all U S citizens DIRTY no govt DOLE,and there you have it reduced un subsadized drug consumption.
ReplyDelete@ buela
ReplyDeleteYou're always full of surprises. I can't get enough of your crazy comments. No matter what side you take, you always explain yourself eloquently.
I was trying to post a comment earlier about Fox but I accidentally placed it on another comment section. What I was trying to say is that Fox is a hypocrite. I know that he was known for being a great speaker but in reality, he was a bad president. He talks bad about the U.S. but when he needs help from the U.S., he knows how to act at his best behavior. But if Fox thinks that he was a good president, he's dreaming. He does'nt deserve a center under his name. I'll give some credit to Calderon, at least he has balls.
Im guessing the billions we send in money to "help the war" is not enough. Of course its not enough when its all going in the goverments pocket right? fuck the peeople of mexico is what the president of mexico says. But lets keep stupid american sending us more money and keep blaming them for all of our shit it makes sence. Yes it all does calderon..... untill we cross over the bridge and kick your ass along with all the other shitty communist twinkle toe mother fuckers over there. :-)
ReplyDeleteTiso said:"Cocaine and heroin arent legal in england, france, germany, or in any country for that matter. Yet these countries dont have the same problems as mexico. That leads me to believe the problem isnt drugs, the problem is mexico. And as for the guys buying stinger missles....well it wasnt an american guy buying stingers to blow up other americans."
ReplyDeleteYou're right, however it doesn't mean that those countries you mentioned do not have a drug problem, they do. I lived in the UK and traveled in France extensively and I can tell you that drugs are everywhere, you can get anything, anytime. They don't have problems with lawlesness because the stuff is easy to get and since they are more developed countries, they have the infraestructure to combat the problem using different strategies. As far as the thugs buying Stinger missiles, are you saying that you'd care only if they were being used against Americans? the fact is that those weapons are going to be used against someone and it could be Americans too so why not stop them anyway? I don't believe all drugs should be legalized but at least weed should, because it is the most widely consumed drug in the US and everywhere else. Many studies (some available online) have been made on marihuana and not a single one of them can point to any adverse health effects. In addition the US government has a very contradictory health policy; alcohol and tabacco, two substances that have been proven to cause inmense damage to individuals and families are readily available for adults and even minors to consume, yet the government sanctions the sale of these very dangerous substances which have been proven beyond any doubt to KILL people. So what's the problem here? The problem is that legalization implies that there would be less money for budgets to run agencies that also victimize Americans like the BATF. There are other agencies that employ thousands of people to run the failed drug war, who would find themselves on the street looking for other lines of productive work instead of kicking doors in the middle of the night. Incarcerating people who choose to get high and shoving them into a prison system that is slowly becoming privatized- hence increasing the vested interest in jailing people for a minor offense like smoking a joint in the privacy of their home- is a failed policy which results can be seen in the overcrowding of the prison system. Instead, the government should be going after real criminals, like the banksters looting our country, but they won't because those are the people who bankroll their reelection campaigns... I think I have made a good case of pointing out the inconsistency of a policy that is an absolute failure and that has bled the Treasury chest dry along with the other wars currently being led from Washington. According to Einstein "The definition of madness is to continue to do the same thing repeatedly while hoping to obtain a different result" . So far, everything I read on these boards has more to do with pointing out the corruption of the Mexican government or their failure to contain a problem that is essentially ours because we are the largest drug user country in the planet and people are getting high anyway, regardless of this useless prohibition.
Why not decriminalize it and tax it in Mexico. Let the US worry about drugs going into the country. Give cartels the opportunity to sell drugs legally, start drug making corporations if they want, and let them work on the next major drug. With the money made off taxing drugs, it can be used to educated people that drugs are bad, but ofcourse you'll get individuals who still going to use them. Also, it'll attract drug users around the world, tourists, and Mexico can return to normal. Why does it has to be our problem. Let the US worry about what's going into their country.
ReplyDeleteLook, a lot of countries have decriminalized drugs and the cartels still make billions supplying Canada with pot and Europe with all sorts of drugs.
ReplyDeleteEven with "medical marijuana" in California, the cartels have a huge presence and make billions in California.
Amsterdam has a major drug problem and anything goes there. And the cartels are increasing their presence in Europe and Scandinavia.
So, legalizing/decriminalizing is not a solution to anything.
I also agree with the prior comment - quit blaming the US for Mexico's problems of corruption, poor policing and an unwillingness to clean house.
If the americans werent so fuked up in the head and stop using drugs there wouldnt be any problems. Thanks again US for screwing up the world again.
ReplyDelete