In defense of PRI - of sorts. The return of the PRI as a "tragedy"

In a friendly crowd of PAN supporters, Felipe Calderón celebrated 10 years of PAN rule in Mexico, dropping a few controversial lines: "...Mexico does not deserve to be stranded in the middle of the road to democratic change that we have undertaken, much less the tragedy of going back to the old, to the authoritarian, to the irresponsible."

It is an inherent problem of presidentialism that no separation between head of government and head of state exists - the president, despite being an obviously highly partisan choice, also is supposed to represent the country as a whole. Statements like that, though said in the context of a PAN celebration, which were clearly signaled at the PRI, is about as far away from such a mandate as possible. It sadly reminds one of the clumsy and idiotic intervention by Vicente Fox in 2005 and 2006 on behalf of PAN. Moreover, despite all the criticism - and lawdy lawd there is much to chose from - of PRI's authoritarian streaks, should Mexico's president be in the business of deeming a possible PRI return to Los Pinos as a "tragedy" in advance, whomever the candidate may be? While I, too, would personally would consider in particular a Peña Nieto win to be, to be sure, tragic for Mexico, I am not the president of Mexico, and as such have a bit more leeway to say so than Calderón.

Moreover, and more concretely, it may make the passing of any significant legislation the coming two years even more difficult: Chamber of Deputies President Jorge Carlos Ramírez Marín, for one, issues such a warning. One should not forget that like it or not, for the next two  years, PRI will still have a majority in Congress.

Gordian knot cut, for now, in San Lázaro: Jorge Carlos Ramírez Marín president of the Congress directorate

The crisis engulfing the Mexican congress regarding control over its key organs appears to be resolved, for now, yet the deal appears more than a bit shady: PRI will preside over the Congress directorate, while the PRD will get control over both the directorate and the coordinating junta the last year of the congress period.

To recall: PRI, reneging on previous accords, decided to go for the presidency for the coming year of the mesa ejecutiva or Congress directorate, a key organ, even though this corresponded to the PRD. Given that the presidency of both the directorate and the coordinating junta rotates among the three largest parties in congress, this would, given the cycle, leave the PRD in control of both of these organs the last year of congress, which would be unconstitutional. Then how was this possibly resolved?

The coordinators of the parties in congress agreed to a deal where PRD will get to preside the two organs, though a special vote of 2/3 majority will be held where the stipulations of the Organic Law regulating Congress will simply be "set aside" for that year. PRD will simply have to take their word for it, that this will actually come to pass.

Yet it gets fishier. Knowing that the part of PRD allied with Andrés Manuel López Obrador was strongly opposed to allowing the Nueva Izquirda faction obtain the Congress presidency, the deal that PRD's group coordinator and AMLO  incondicional Alejandro Encinas made appears a bit suspicious, given that Encinas himself loudly condemned as unconstitutional just a few days ago the outcome he now has apparently signed on to.

The new mesa ejecutiva president, Jorge Carlos Ramírez Marín, is considered very close to PRI national leader Beatriz Paredes, who has not given up her own presidential ambitions, or at least to be mayor of Mexico City. Even though she will step down as PRI leader, her influence will thus clearly be felt in San Lázaro the coming session.