Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been fiercely criticized for revealing the telephone number of a journalist from The New York Times who contributed to an article saying that his failed 2006 presidential campaign was partly funded by the Sinaloa drug cartel, and that he was subsequently investigated by U.S. authorities.
AMLO made the shocking revelations at his February 22 press conference, when he called the allegations made by the U.S. newspaper “false,” “slanderous” and an affront to the dignity of his office. He later denied he had fallen foul of the nation’s privacy laws by giving out the journalist’s personal details, saying controversially that his “authority as president” is above the law and he was fully justified in his actions.
In its report, the NYT said that U.S. officials had investigated “accusations of cartel links with allies of the president of Mexico,” but “did not find any direct connection between him and the criminal organizations.”
The White House later denied starting an investigation into AMLO for illegal financing of his 2006 campaign. The U.S. ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, also affirmed that a probe had never taken place.
Please login or subscribe to view the complete article.