President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) called out U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, saying he was misinformed about violence perpetrated against Mexican journalists.
During his Thursday morning news conference, Lopez Obrador took aim at Blinken, telling him to stay out of Mexico’s issues.
“Ask him to become informed and not act in an interfering fashion,” the Mexican president said. “Mexico is not a colony of the U.S. — nor a protectorate.”
The harsh rebuke comes one day after Blinken took to social media to express concern about the number of journalists killed in Mexico. As Breitbart Texas has reported, five journalists were killed in Mexico since the start of 2022.
The high number of journalists killed in Mexico this year and the ongoing threats they face are concerning. I join those calling for greater accountability and protections for Mexican journalists. My heart goes out to the loved ones of those who gave their lives for the truth.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) February 23, 2022
“He is poorly informed because otherwise, he would be acting in bad faith,” Lopez Obrador said. “Of course, it is lamentable that journalists are murdered, but in all the cases we are acting. There is no impunity.”
Blinken’s counterpart in Mexico, Marcelo Ebrard, sent a letter rebutting the tweet and cited figures showing a decrease in violence in that country.
Les comparto comunicación que estoy enviando al Secretario de Estado de los Estados Unidos, Antony J. Blinken, en estos momentos : pic.twitter.com/kouufDhj2b
— Marcelo Ebrard C. (@m_ebrard) February 24, 2022
Lopez Obrador’s statement drew a response from White House Spokeswoman Jen Psaki, who said the government has seen the threats faced by journalists in Mexico and that Blinken was speaking factually.
PSAKI: “We’ve seen factually the threats that have been posed to journalists in Mexico. We’ve seen the threats. That is a concern that I think the Secretary of State was expressing on behalf of the United States about those abuses. I think he was speaking to facts we’ve seen” pic.twitter.com/KG5KZy6H6y
— José Díaz Briseño (@diazbriseno) February 23, 2022
Earlier this week, Lopez Obrador called out Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) for similar comments. The Mexican politician was responding to Cruz’s statements during a Senate hearing.
#LaMañanera @lopezobrador_ pide a los paisanos en EU que no confíen en el senador Ted Cruz, a quien calificó de metiche por opinar sobre su gobierno,añadió que es chueco.https://t.co/OSaEZM48lt pic.twitter.com/Vroa8VAw9J
— @diario24horas (@diario24horas) February 22, 2022
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.
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